Kourtney Kardashian slammed for 'insensitive' beach post after devastating wildfires in Hawaii

Kourtney Kardashian is being called out by fans for sharing an 'insensitive' Instagram post amid the devastating wildfires in Hawaii.

The reality TV star, who is expecting her fourth child, showed off her baby bump in an Instagram post shared on Thursday (10 August).

The carousel features a silhouette shot of the eldest Kardashian sister cradling her bump and a snap of the beach among others.

However the caption, which reads 'the ocean calms the fire in me', has caused outrage in the comments due to the post's unfortunate timing and wording.

The devastating wildfires in Hawaii began on Tuesday (8 August) and were fuelled by winds from Hurricane Dora.

Instagram/@kourtneykardash

Footage shows the destruction left in the wake of the hurricane, with the historic town of Lahaina being one of the many that have been impacted.

People have been forced to jump into the ocean to escape the fires and President Joe Biden declared it a ‘major disaster’ as firefighters continue to battle the flames as of Friday (11 August).

State governor Josh Green called the wildfires ‘catastrophic’ and said it is probably the largest natural disaster in the island’s history.

A number of people killed in Hawaii as a result for the wildfires rose to 55 on Friday, and a 1000 people are said to be missing, the governor says.

And fans were quick to make a connection between the Poosh founder's caption and the wildfires in Hawaii.

Instagram/@kourtneykardash

"Maybe not the best time to say the ocean calms the fire - when people in Hawaii were forced into the ocean because of a fire," one person said.

While a lengthy comment under Kourtney's post read: "Except when you're forced to jump into the ocean because you and your car have been engulfed in flames as you try to escape the fire that's burning down your home.

"I know you're just a celebrity and you won't even respond to this, but my entire town just burnt to the ground, and it's like the people who have the ability to help just pretend not to know what's going on.

And a third wrote: "I wonder if you all have thought about the people of Maui? You seem very insensitive. Do we really care about your baby bumb [sic] when the people of Maui are suffering? Really??"

Amidst the backlash, however, some fans came out in support of Kourtney and defended the post.

Instagram/@kourtneykardash

One person replied: "Omggggg way to overthink"

Another commenter asked: "Are people not allowed to enjoy the beach now? P*ss off man"

And someone else responded: "So what? People in Greece are on fire too and soon CA will have wind fires…so now people can enjoy the ocean because there are wildfires."

After re-sharing the post on her Instagram Story, Kourtney also posted a link to a Maui fundraiser.

UNILAD has contacted Kourtney Kardashian's representative for comment.