'There's nothing to go back to': Hawaii wildfire evacuee shares harrowing escape

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WILDFIRE DISASTER. WE APPRECIATE YOUR TIME AND REPORTING. I WANT TO BRING IN DUSTIN WHO EVACUATED IN THE LATE AFTERNOON YESTERDAY. THAT IS WHERE MIGUEL IS HEADED TO NOW. HE EVACUATED WITH HIS GRANDFATHER AND THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS BURNT TO THE GROUND. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US DURING THIS DIFFICULT TIME. I KNOW THIS IS PROBABLY HARD TO TALK ABOUT. I'M GLAD THAT YOU AND YOUR FAMILY ARE SAFE. WALK US THROUGH WHAT HAPPENED AND HOW THIS WILDFIRE SPREAD SO QUICKLY. >> IT IS NOT UNCOMMON FOR FIRES TO HAPPEN DURING THE SUMMER. ESPECIALLY DURING A DROUGHT. POWER LINES GO DOWN AND SPARK FIRES. IT HAPPENED FIVE YEARS AGO WITH A HURRICANE ENDED DEVASTATED THE COMMUNITY. A FEW HOMES WERE LOST BUT EVERYBODY PULLED TOGETHER. THIS IS UNPRECEDENTED. MY HOME AND MY HOMETOWN, THERE IS NOTHING LEFT. MY FAMILY IS THINKING OF LEAVING. WE HAVE NOTHING BUT HE CLOTHES ON OUR BACKS. EVERYTHING IS GONE. >> THIS HAS TO BE INCREDIBLY EMOTIONAL FOR YOU. WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO EVACUATE WITH YOUR GRANDFATHER AND THE REST OF YOUR FAMILY? >> WE LIVE DOWNTOWN AND FLAMES WERE COMING OUT OF THE BUILDING. MY GRANDFATHER LIVED ON THAT PROPERTY SINCE BIRTH AND IT HAS BEEN IN OUR FAMILY FOR 80 YEARS. FOUR GENERATIONS OF PEOPLE HAVE LIVED THERE. WE KNEW THE SMOKE WAS GETTING CLOSE AND THE WIND WAS HOWLING. THE CONDOMINIUM ACROSS THE STREET STARTED TO SMOKE AND WE WANTED TO PUT IT OFF AS LONG AS WE COULD. WE KNEW OUR HOUSE WAS GOING TO BE NEXT. >> THIS IS THE VIDEO YOU SENT IT DOES. I DON'T KNOW IF YOU WERE JUST WATCHING THAT BUT THAT IS THE AREA THAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT? >> MY HOUSE IS A LITTLE FURTHER DOWN FROM THERE. THAT IS WHERE THE FIRE STARTED. IT MADE ITS WAY DOWN AND PEOPLE WERE JUMPING INTO THE WATER. I HAD TO GET MY GRANDPA OUT. WE LEFT ALL HIS MEDICATIONS BEHIND. NONE OF THE PAPERWORK WE WOULD NEED TO GET HIM AND HELP ANYWHERE. NOTHING, JUST OUR IDS AND WE RAN BACK INTO THE HOUSE AND WE WERE LOOKING FOR OUR PASSPORTS AND THE SMOKE WAS SO THICK THAT WE COULDN'T BREATHE. WE LEFT AND DIDN'T TURN BACK. IT TOOK TWO AND HALF HOURS TO GET OUT. MY FATHER GOT HOME FROM WORK AND THOUGHT WE ALL DIED. IT WAS COMPLETELY ENGULFED JUST AFTER WE LEFT THE HOUSE. >> NO CELL PHONE RECEPTION SO HE HAD NO IDEA WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS FAMILY. >> MY BROTHER WAITED ON THE HIGHWAY THAT MY DAD WOULD TAKE HOME AND FOLLOWED HIM AND FLASHED HIS LIGHT TO GET HIS ATTENTION AND MY DAD PULLED OVER REALIZING WHO HE WAS AND THEY HAD A MOMENT. MY DAD THOUGHT WE HAD DIED. THAT IS PRETTY MUCH WHAT HAPPENED. WE ASSUME THAT WE WERE NOT SAFE AND HE THOUGHT EVERYONE DIED. THE BODY COUNT CONFIRMED THAT PEOPLE ON THE GROUND ARE SAYING THERE AT LEAST 100 DEATHS ALREADY DUE TO THE FIRES AND I HOPE THAT THEY CAN FIND PEACE AND THEY CAN BE FOUND. >> THE PEOPLE THAT RAN INTO THE OCEAN, THEY WERE AFRAID THEY WERE GOING TO DIE FROM THE WILDFIRE. THEY HAD TO DO THAT BECAUSE THE FIRE HAD CUT OFF ALL THEIR ESCAPE PATHS? >> IT'S A SMALL TOWN. WE HAVE ONE HIGHWAY AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS A TWO-WAY STREET AND LITTLE SIDE ROADS. PEOPLE WERE JUMPING INTO THE WATER. THE FIRE MADE ITS WAY DOWN THE MOUNTAIN. THEY HAD NO CHOICE. >> THEY COULD STAY IN THE FLAMES OR JUMP INTO THE WATER. >> I KNOW THAT NUMBER YOU SAID THAT THE DEATH COUNT IS LIKELY TO BE HIGHER. YOU ARE GETTING INFORMATION FROM PEOPLE WHO HAVE WITNESSED MORE PEOPLE WHO DIED FROM THE FIRE AND WERE UNABLE TO ESCAPE AND THAT NUMBER IS LARGER THAN SIX? >> LARGER. I KNOW PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN ON THE GROUND IN THEY ARE DOING THEIR OWN SEARCH AND RESCUE. THEY HAVE BEEN ON THE STREETS AND PEOPLE ARE UNACCOUNTED FOR AND THERE ARE NUMBERS THAT WE HAVE NOT HAD CONTACT WITH IN 24 HOURS AND WE HOPE THERE WATCHING THE BROADCAST AND I HOPE THAT THEY CAN SEE THAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR THEM BECAUSE THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT ARE UNACCOUNTED FOR. THE COUNTRY WAS NOT READY FOR THIS. THIS CAUSED OVERPOPULATION AND THE INFRASTRUCTURE COULD NOT HANDLE IT. I AM 30 MILES AWAY AND THERE ARE ANOTHER THOUSAND ACRES OF FIRE BURNING. >> WHEN YOU LEFT YOU TOOK A PHOTO. IT WAS FROM YOUR HOME AND HAVE A CHURCH. IS THAT CORRECT? >> THE CHURCH IS A PICTURE THAT YOU SHOWED EARLIER. >> THIS IS A CHURCH? >> THAT IS OUR FAMILY CHURCH. LIKE I SAID, FOUR GENERATIONS GREW UP HERE. MY ANCESTORS ARE BURIED IN THE CEMETERY THERE AND THAT IS A PRESCHOOL AND IT IS COMPLETELY WRECKED. >> HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF HISTORIC SITES AND MEMORABILIA AND ANCIENT ARTIFACTS AND DOCUMENTS HAVE ALL GONE UP IN FLAMES. >> YOU ARE SPEAKING TO THE ENTIRE COUNTRY TONIGHT. WHAT DOES HAWAII NEED AND WHAT IS YOUR MESSAGE TO THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION? >> THERE IS A GREAT LOSS. SOMEONE LIKE MYSELF, WANT EVERYONE TO KNOW WE NEED COMPASSION AND WE NEED TO BE LOVED EVEN IN THE WORST OF THIS. WE NEEDED TO GIVE OUT. WE ARE THE ONES IN NEED. IT IS MUCH WORSE THAN ANYONE IS SAYING RIGHT NOW. >> OKAY. I AM SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS TONIGHT. I THANK YOU FOR SHARING. I HOPE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY ARE OKAY AND YOUR FRIENDS AND EVERYONE YOU KNOW OUT THERE SOMEHOW SURVIVED THIS

Channel: NBC News

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Length: 7min 49sec (469 seconds)

Published: Thu Aug 10 2023