They said assistance might deal with the logistics of navigating reentry hazards. The couple told media gathered outside the reentry checkpoint that they were there to help escort and support those who are reentering properties. John and Gay Williams, Oahu-based co-directors of Hawaii Pacific Baptist Disaster Relief, were among the volunteers at the Kaniau Road reentry zone. Various volunteer groups from across the country came to help ease the struggles. Transportation was also available from local hotel shelters. Water, shade, washing stations, portable toilets, language assistance, and medical and mental health care were available at the site. Officials had anticipated the difficulty of coming home and had organized support around the first two days of reentry. Still, Oliveira said most residents came prepared. “Initially, people who haven’t been here since the fire are taken aback by the amount of the extent of destruction,” Oliveira said, adding that one overwhelmed property owner had shared, “Nothing is here from our home.” By midday, 25 cars had come through the checkpoint. Monday, 16 permit holders had already reentered to visit the properties where they lived to collect information and photographs for insurance purposes and, most importantly, perhaps find some closure. Oliveira said 23 people picked up permits for their parcels, and that before 10 a.m. Others are still waiting for their turn to come back home, he said.ĭarryl Oliveira, interim administrator of the Maui Emergency Management Agency, told media gathered at the reopening checkpoint that there are about 25 parcels in Zone 1-C, and that some parcels have more than one home on the property. Hogan said only a very small portion of the residents from his Wahikuli neighborhood lived in Zone 1-C. It was the way the wind was blowing basically.” It’s just so horrible and the fact that I made it is just luck. There were a fair amount of people who did come back in before they got the guard people in here and they were crying, sobbing. Hogan choked up as he recalled, “It was worse the day after (the fire). He added that it was good to see some returning neighbors, but described the mood as grim for Lahaina’s first resident reentry. Hogan said the vistas from the Ainakea Road side of his property “look like pictures of Hiroshima or Nagasaki with nothing left but the concrete block walls and everything else is ash. He said he has been caring for the bird for his neighbor, who has been sheltering at a hotel since the fire. He spoke to media gathered near the reentry checkpoint with a macaw named I‘ilani perched on his shoulder. Hogan described the difficulty of living without neighbors in a devastated neighborhood that he, as a contractor, estimates could take a decade to rebuild. 9, but has been living without power and his only water is from an improvised source. Hogan said he was able to return home Aug. The home of Chuck Hogan, who lives on the corner of Kaniau and Ainakea roads, was spared. It appears to have largely survived the inferno, judging by images on Google Maps, while many other properties were leveled by the fast-moving flames. Zone 1-C is part of the larger Wahikuli neighborhood, on the northern edge of where Lahaina’s 2,170 acres burned. A few of the walls are still standing, and some green lawn remains, she said. … It’s a piece of home.”Ĭlaydon’s home was a single- story cinder block house painted a reddish-tan, similar to the red dirt in Lahaina. “Whatever I might find, even if it’s just those jars of sea glass, I’m looking forward to taking it. “I want the freedom to just be there and absorb what happened,” Claydon said. Little remains recognizable beyond the jars of sea glass that stood outside the front door of the home that she lived in for 13 years and raised three children.Ĭlaydon hoped to collect those jars and any other mementos she might find. Jes Claydon told The Associated Press that she has been able to see the ruins of her rental home from a National Guard blockade near the burn zone. The neighborhood, above Wahikuli Wayside Park, is near the ocean and the Lahaina Civic Center, where President Joe Biden recently met with survivors during his Aug. The returning residents were those who live or own property along Kaniau Road, which was among the first to be cleared of initial toxic debris. 8 fire that killed at least 97 people and destroyed more than 2,200 buildings, most of them homes. Others rushed in hoping to recover precious items that were left behind when they fled the fast-moving Aug. Some marked the somber moment with prayer. LAHAINA > It was like a funeral procession as the first Lahaina evacuees with passes to reenter the burn zone began returning Monday to their homes along Kaniau Road, known as Zone 1-C.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |