‘Flames coming, sparks everywhere’: How survivors escaped Hawaii fires

As United States emergency crews continue to battle wildfires in Hawaii, residents and tourists have recounted their desperate escapes from wind-fuelled flames on the island of Maui, where some fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

Retired mailman and Vietnam war veteran Thomas Leonard lived in Lahaina, the historical capital of Hawaii, for 44 years until this week.That is, until the rapidly moving wildfire that destroyed much of the town burned down his apartment, melted his Jeep and forced him to spend four terrifying hours hiding from the flames behind a seawall.

“I’ve got nothing left,” Leonard told The Associated Press as he sat on an inflatable mattress outside a shelter for those who fled the blaze. “I’m a disabled vet, so now I’m a homeless vet,” he added with a small laugh.

The fast-moving inferno, which started on Tuesday, spread from the brush outside of town and ravaged Lahaina. It was one of three major wildfires on Maui, all of them still burning, that were fuelled by dry conditions, a buildup of fuel, and 100 kilometres per hour (60 miles per hour) wind.

At least 55 people have been killed in the blazes, according to the latest tally from officials, but that death toll is expected to rise.As firefighters continue to put out smaller fires, federal recovery dollars have started to flow along with an influx of supplies and equipment after US President Joe Biden on Thursday approved a disaster declaration for Hawaii.Governor Josh Green said the inferno that reduced much of Lahaina to smoldering ruins was the worst natural disaster in the state’s history, making thousands of people homeless and levelling as many as 1,000 buildings.

“It’s going to take many years to rebuild Lahaina,” Green said during a news conference, as officials began to map out a plan to shelter the newly homeless in hotels and tourist rental properties.

Deborah Leoffler said she lost a home on Front Street, Lahaina’s main thoroughfare, that had been in her family since 1945. She evacuated so quickly that she left her debit cards on her nightstand and now cannot access her bank account.

“But I still have my family, and that’s what counts,” she told the AP.‘A nightmare’
Elsewhere on the island, residents and tourists jumped into the Pacific Ocean to escape the flames. US Coast Guard commander Aja Kirksey told CNN about 100 people were believed to have fled into the water.

Kirksey said helicopter pilots struggled to see because of dense smoke, but that a Coast Guard vessel had been able to rescue more than 50 people from the ocean. “It was a really rapidly developing scene and pretty harrowing for the victims that had to jump into the water,” she added.