. >>> nbc's chris pallone is live at capitol hill with the latest on developments. ng, chris. >> reporter: scott, good morning to you. as the president and first lady prepare to go to maui to see that devastation for themselves, there are now hundreds of federal and state officials, frankly, who have descended on hawaii to try to help. ahead of monday's visit to hawaii, president biden offered a message of support for the victims of last week's wildfires. >> i want the people of hawaii to know your country is with you. >> reporter: the federal government and states across the mainland have scrambled to get resources to maui. >> that's why we took immediate action, surging hundreds of federal personnel, delivering thousands of liters of water, cots and blankets. >> reporter: more than 600 federal responders are on maui, including 250 search and rescue team members to help find those lost in the fast-moving inferno. >> this is a really hard disaster and this is a really difficult search operation. >>> maryland among several states sending those to help identify victims