**IMPORTANT NOTE – Please scroll to the bottom for resources/links on support for shelter needs and donations or click here**

Just like that…poof. The entire city of Lahaina was leveled to the ground.

Me and my roommates sat from our rooftop watching our city get engulfed in flames. If the end of the world ever comes in our lifetime, this is what it would look like. I heard the news had called it “apocalyptic”, which was the same word we used to describe the scene in front of us looking at the flames in the distance.

The majority of people that I know personally in Lahaina lost their jobs and their businesses. Thousands of people are homeless, without a job, and with no idea what the next steps are.

We went from having all of these big ambitious plans to making a trip to Target where we’re shopping for toiletries and a few pairs of underwear, shorts and t-shirts to get us by for the day.

Do you need anymore proof that we’re not promised tomorrow?

Sun up to Sun down

The day started just like any other. I rolled out of bed, drank a glass of pre-workout and headed to my favorite place on the island to get a morning workout. Hurricane Dora was a category four hurricane, but it was so far off the coast of Hawaii that nobody was concerned. In fact, I was so off the grid that I didn’t even know there was a hurricane rolling through! The wind gusts were powerful and there was enough wind damage to cause downed power lines, road closures and blocked up traffic. So much so, that I had to head back home without making it to the gym, hyped up on a little too much caffeine and not enough heavy objects to pick up and set back down for optimal muscle growth.

No big deal, it could be worse.

Power was out all across the western part of the island and cell phone service was extremely spotty. No electric meant no tv, wi-fi or air conditioning. So I picked up a book to read and did some writing. Not much was different today other than feeling as if I had the meat sweats all day from eating at a Brazilian barbecue.

Okay, nothing was different at all today.

It was so windy that my roommate and his girlfriend didn’t go to work, so we spent the day deep cleaning the house to make it more livable. Also to catch that pesky little mouse who’s been eating through our snacks. Music blasting over the speaker, we were emphatically shouting across the rooms to each other how we were contributing to the group activity.

The day couldn’t have been any more normal. Until we saw it.

At 4pm, a black cloud began to cover the sky above the ocean on the backside of our home. At first glance, you’d think it was a storm cloud rolling through, but Lahaina doesn’t get much rain. Something was off.

News broke that a wildfire was taking over the upcountry town of Kula, a little fire in Lahaina had been contained, but that a third fire in Lahaina was breaking out. This explained the smoke in the sky. Still, with no cell phone reception or wi-fi, we were in the dark as to the events happening around us throughout the day.

It’s important to recognize that fires aren’t out of the ordinary in Maui. The west side of the island doesn’t get much rain, and brush fires are inevitable. The only difference this day was that there was strong, unpredictable wind from the hurricane that would inevitably blow this fire in every direction.

We walked outside the front of the house to the street to get a better perspective and saw an enormous thick cloud of black smoke floating through the air towards the oceanside. You’d think a bomb went off. It looked like a war zone.

The neighbors were all outside of their houses looking up at the smoke. Everyone was outside. You could instantly notice a look of concern in their eyes. We were exchanging whatever little information we had with each other since we had no access to the internet or media outlets.

The fire began on Lahianaluna Rd, a few miles from where we stood. Although the fires were out of control, we refused to believe that it would reach us. That would mean that all of Lahaina would be destroyed. It would have to carry several miles, over a giant empty parking lot and streets, a little body of water, and still traverse all the way across our neighborhood to the other side by the Civic center. The Civic center that was being used as a shelter. A “safe” place to be.

This fire didn’t care.

As we stood there feeling helpless, we all felt a giant heat wave engulf us all at the same time. It felt like we were in a bubble of heat. It was coming.

Sure enough, a police cruiser made its round through the neighborhood after dark. “Evacuate. Evacuate. Evacuate.”

We quickly packed whatever belongings we could into our cars and made our way out. We thought this was just a precautionary measure. It wasn’t. Embers from the fire were being spread rapidly from the wind gusts and it had crossed over into our neighborhood.

They didn’t tell us where to evacuate, so we had no clue where to go. So the four of us, committed to stick together, drove north in three vehicles full of whatever belongings we could pack until we found a good resting spot.

We found a lot in front of the Times grocery store to park, and we could do nothing but sit and wait. The road was closed going the other direction, so there was no going back. We had no clue what was going on, where the fire had gone, what had been destroyed, nothing. All we knew was that apparently another fire was breaking out in Kihei, on the south side of the island. So we sat there in this uncomfortable feeling of “not-knowing”, with fires breaking out everywhere, trying to find a way to fall asleep in our cars until day broke.

Hopefully we’d wake up to some good news. Any news.

Day Break, Day 2

Sleepy, hungry, thirsty and confused.

We were in line in front of a grocery store that wouldn’t open because workers couldn’t make it over. As we waited, hoping we could get food and water, we were comparing notes with everyone.

“I heard the Civic Center burned down.”

“You should see front street, the pictures look horrifying.”

Waiting in this parking lot, you’d run into all the people you know as you were in line to enter the store or walking around.

Lahaina is a small community, everyone knows each other. This is the definition of island life. You truly feel for one another because the community is so tight knit. You know Joe probably lost his house because he lives on the other side of the neighborhood and if the Civic Center went down, so did everything south of it. Jane’s business on Front Street is toast because everyone saw the harbor on fire. The stories go on.

We knew we had to assess the damage ourself. Until we saw it with our own eyes, we refused to believe it. We drove as close as we could to the road closure, parked and walked a mile to the street. Some houses were still standing, so there was hope. But all hope goes out the window once you turn the corner into a war zone and see the house you lived in burnt to a crisp.

Everything was gone. It was time to leave and head north.

As we walked back, you’d see people everywhere break out into tears, embrace one another, and mourn together. We were no different. Our hearts burned deep just as the fire that took everything from us.

The days that follow

There are two routes out of Lahaina. One goes through the center of the island, which was blocked off due to the fires. One option remained, the longer route, heading around the west side of the island where all traffic was being directed. The only problem was that two of us were running out of gas, and there were no gas stations accessible to refuel. We might run out of fuel driving on a one-lane road along the cliff side in bumper to bumper traffic, but there was no reasonable alternative. So we gave it a shot, and we lucked out. Other people weren’t so lucky.

Now what? This became the big question. The one that’s still on all of our minds today. Food, water and shelter. Back to the bare necessities. The basic building blocks for survival.

With no home, no work and no idea what’s going to happen from here, we’re starting from ground zero. Fortunately many of us have insurance and a shelter to stay. Not everyone is as fortunate, and this is just the beginning.

The community is truly all hands on deck right now. You see it everywhere. People are making supply runs across the island when the roads are open, volunteering at the shelters, taking people into their homes and giving them a bed and food, and people everywhere are asking how they can be of service.

The people of Maui are showing up.

Listen up guys – if you’re on-island, I know we’re all thinking the same thing. “How can I help? Am I doing enough? Where do we go from here?”

This is a hard question to answer.

Focus on taking care of yourself first. When the oxygen masks drop in an airplane, you’re instructed to first place on your mask. That’s because you can’t help others until you’ve taken care of yourself. At that point, just do your best and know that you’re doing all that you can.

I’m staying on-island as long as I’m able to so that I can help people get their lives to a point where it feels as “normal” as possible. This place has become home, and I now I finally understand the feeling people have when they can’t leave a disaster area. You want to help however you can and you feel like you can’t give up on your people.

Know that if you need to leave to take care of yourself, that’s not admitting defeat. You’re taking a time out. Give yourself a break, you just went through potentially the most traumatic thing you’ll ever go through in your life. You have to do what’s best for you and your mental health. You can still help from a distance and be there for your people.

Regardless if you’re on island or not, know that we will get through this together. We will rebuild. We will make it back to Lahaina.

We are Lahaina Strong.

Resources

Last updated: Wednesday, August 16th at 1:53pm HST
For most up-to-date resources, check the Maui Resources page

Shelter

Realtors Association of Maui
Maui Kokua – to provide housing or if you need housing

Hope Chapel
Kokua Fund if you need housing
Complete this form if you can provide housing

Malama Maui
Add yourself to the form if you can either provide or need housing

Alternatively
Reach out Directly through me on Instagram and include the following information:

1) Number of people who need shelter
2) Starting date and duration
3) Are you in a wheelchair or can’t walk
4) Do you have pets – if so, what kind
5) Location requirements
6) Any special requests

Pet Shelter

Pampered Pooch LLC
Free dog boarding for families in need – no supplies needed, they provide everything
Jake – 808-856-6699
Kori – 808-298-5839

Vehicles for the Displaced

ChosenRentals – DM their Instagram Page

Go Fund Me links

These are links to people I know personally who have been affected:

The Block Staff & Members – link to blog post about the gym here
Flores Family
Britany, Krystle and Family
Helping Tiffany after the Lahaina Wildfire
Sarah Stauffer
Federico Bursich
May Jonita
Kelsey Gowen
The Cruz Family
Baltazar Family

Go Fund Me links – shared via friends

These are links to sources that have been shared with me

Comprehensive List of People in need & their story
Lahaina Ohana Instagram for Venmo Accounts

Donations – Reputable Organizations

American Red Cross
Hawaii Community Foundation
Maui United Way
Maui Food Bank

**Note – I will update this list as more resources become available. If you have anything to contribute to the list, please reach out to me.