My brother lives on Maui. Here's what he asks of Coloradans this week.
As an investigative reporter for CBS News Colorado, I rarely insert my first-person perspective into a story, but in light of this week's devastating wildfires on the island of Maui, I found it impossible not to introduce you to my kind older brother, David Williams, a Maui resident of 13 years.
Dave is a father of two boys, and a physician at a local hospital on the island. He lives in Kihei, a town farther to the east of the now destroyed Lahaina town.
While he says he could see the red glows of the fire from his home's porch, fortunately, being to the east of the fires, his home and his family are all okay, and after a brief evacuation to a friend's home on Tuesday, they were able to return home Wednesday.
But for many of his friends and colleagues on the island, it's a much different story.
He says entire careers have been lost for some of his friends who owned tourism companies.
He says one of his friends was trying to escape the flames with his 13-year-old son, but had nowhere to turn, so they jumped in the ocean and swam for four hours until they were rescued.
"They were trying to evacuate and flee, and the flames were coming up behind them, and they had to abandon their car, which was lost in the fire, it exploded, and they ran to the ocean nearby and jumped in the ocean to avoid the flames and survive, and they were in the ocean for four hours, the flames all around and smoke," my brother told me today. "It's truly devastating and trying times."
He says the devastation of the historic Lahaina town is also a crushing cultural loss to everyone who lives on the island.
"The whole island is grieving and mourning in a state of shock, because Lahaina town, it was the heart of the island. Historically, it was the capital of Hawaii before statehood... and then, once in contact with Westerners, via the whalers and missionaries, it was kind of a hub of commerce, and it was a big port area," Dave said. "So, Lahaina, today it's like the Bourbon street of the Pacific, of Hawaii, or the Beale Street, you know, there were lots of tourist shops, and restaurants, and rooftop bars. There were cultural historical museums and buildings... there's just so much history there and cultural relevance. and it was kind of the most central tourist center, where everyone would go to and have a good time."
In tears, my brother told me the beating heart of Maui for generations has since been reduced to ashes.
"It's really tough to imagine such a loss and a wiping out of a town, and of one that is of such relevance and meaning," he said. "I can't imagine it being rebuilt quickly, because there's nothing there. It's going to take years, if not decades to really rebuild... this is probably the worst day in Maui history over generations past and to come."
He says local and state emergency crews have done an incredible job, despite unforgiving conditions, and wanted to thank everyone who has traveled to the island to help battle the flames and set up shelters.
Currently, he says many people are living out of their vehicles, as space is limited on the island, and thousands of displaced people have nowhere else to go but to still standing parking lots to temporarily call home.
As a former Colorado resident himself, who once lived in Fort Collins, I asked him what his message would be to Coloradans in the wake of this disaster.
"Just keep us in your hearts and prayers," he said after taking a beat to gain his composure. "Know that Maui is so strong, and you know, it gets tossed around, but in Maui, it's about 'ohana,' 'family,' and the community, and we will support each other and heal."
