How A Paradise Became A Death Trap: An Update

[0] Hey, it's Sabrina.

[1] This week, the Daily is revisiting some of our favorite episodes of the year, listening back, and then hearing what's happened in the time since they first ran.

[2] Today, the fire the devastated Lahaina, Hawaii in August, and one man's story of surviving it.

[3] It's Tuesday, December 26th.

[4] Hi, is this Idris?

[5] Yes, it is.

[6] Hi.

[7] Idris, thank you for taking the time to talk to.

[8] us.

[9] And I wonder, Idris, if you could introduce yourself from me. Tell me your name, your age, where you live, and what your profession is.

[10] My name is Idris, Nora.

[11] I'm 32 years old.

[12] I lived on prison street in Maui, Lahaina.

[13] And I was the manager, a Hilton property of the beach and pool, work in sales.

[14] Got it.

[15] And I wonder if you could start by telling us, just kind of from the beginning, how your day started?

[16] So actually was my first true day off in the long time.

[17] And I woke up in the middle of the night, which was Monday night, Tuesday morning, around 3 or 4 a .m. when we lost power.

[18] So it got pretty hot.

[19] So I opened up the windows.

[20] And by the time I woke up around 6, 7 a .m., I noticed we didn't have service neither.

[21] Self service.

[22] Yeah.

[23] And honestly, I was just annoyed.

[24] I was like, I've been waiting for this day off forever and no power.

[25] You know, we didn't even know it was a hurricane.

[26] We just thought it was windy.

[27] And were you aware of the fire at that point?

[28] Absolutely not.

[29] There was no fire in the morning that I was aware of.

[30] We had no warnings at all.

[31] And so I think it was around noon or one.

[32] One of my neighbors came and knocked on my door and you say, hey, you need to come out and see this.

[33] So I came out.

[34] and in front of my house, you know, I have a little cottage.

[35] Behind my house, I could see a lot of smoke.

[36] So I called my cat.

[37] I had an outdoor cat, and I called her, and I couldn't find her all day.

[38] And then I just gave up, and I closed my door.

[39] And then my neighbor came back, maybe an hour later, and he said, there's another fire.

[40] And it was closer.

[41] It's actually the street behind us.

[42] And I have a scooter.

[43] So I actually went to go check out how close the fire was.

[44] And I got on Front Street, which is a street that goes along, you know, the ocean.

[45] And I see there's this restaurant up in flame.

[46] And I saw people running and straight in front of me. There's a medical center.

[47] And I remember actually seeing a line of people trying to get into medical center.

[48] And behind me, there's a whole business on fire.

[49] It's like, holy, like, everything was on fire.

[50] Like, I didn't understand how things started to catch on fire.

[51] It didn't make sense.

[52] And now I started to panic.

[53] So I went back to the neighbors, but the neighbors were all gone.

[54] And I felt kind of lost.

[55] And the wind, you know, there was wind and there was trees falling down.

[56] And I screamed for my cat.

[57] And I saw her run under the house and she didn't want to come out.

[58] You know, so I was panicking.

[59] You know, reality started to sit in.

[60] and so I'll say okay maybe you know the safest place to be right now is here because I wouldn't even know where to go and so I'm closing the door and about five minutes everything turned black outside and a medical center across the street was up and slain to the sky oh my god and I couldn't understand I said how like I just felt people like it wasn't there was nothing like five ten minutes ago and it really looked like someone put gasoline all over the building and he just like took up and it didn't understand how like a stone building could burn so fast and so I opened the door still calling my cat and I felt something burning on my shoulder and it was debris like amber and I look up in the sky and it's literally fire coming down the sky it was raining fire and now I said I have to get out of here and so you know I got it Everything I could, you know, all the necessities, clothes and wallet and, you know, pictures or whatever, and put everything in two big bags.

[61] And I ran out of the house.

[62] And as I ran out of the house, there was smoke everywhere.

[63] And I saw one of my neighbors coughing.

[64] He was right in front of the house.

[65] And he was just coughing.

[66] And I said, what are you doing here?

[67] It's like, oh, I went to the store.

[68] And I said, okay, let's get on my scooter.

[69] So he came behind me on my scooter.

[70] And the fire came from uphill.

[71] It was coming down.

[72] So to me, the safest place if this fire is water.

[73] And so, you know, in the panic, I said, we had to go to the harbor.

[74] And then we got on Front Street.

[75] And on Front Street, I was just chaos.

[76] I could hear, you know, screams.

[77] And then I can see people, but I could hear them scream.

[78] Scary screams.

[79] Screens of pain I've never heard before.

[80] They were clearly people burning alive.

[81] like it was a deep pain you know and people throwing up and it was just it was horrifying it was horrifying to hear that I'm so glad I can see it was so it was black because there's so much smoke but we could clearly hear them all around us all around us it felt like we were in hell we'll be right back the wind itself the wind was a scariest thing the wind was so hot it was burning us in it was so strong because everything was on fire And I told Damon, you got to tell me when to turn to the harbor because I can't see nothing.

[82] And so we finally got to the harbor and I left my scooter there.

[83] And at the edge of the water on the harbor, there's a little house, it's called the Harbor Master's Hub.

[84] So we had our back against the wall and we were facing the ocean.

[85] And we're just waiting.

[86] We just didn't know what to do.

[87] Did you say anything to him?

[88] no we were not talking we didn't know I mean in my mind I'm like okay we're going to wait here at least like we're not going to burn that's what I was thinking but a couple minutes waiting there I saw a shadow just run and jump into water on the side of the house and I said Damon do you see this and we look in the water as the big pit bulls are drowning in front of us you know he had the big head and yellow eyes and I didn't know I want to help him but I didn't know if he was going to bite me or pull him with him in the water you know so I kept calling him and calling him, but he couldn't do it.

[89] He tried his best to do it, but he couldn't do it.

[90] And I'll never forget the look he gave me in his eyes.

[91] He just gave up, and his head went underwater.

[92] And I told Damon to hold my feet, and I took my shirt off, and I somehow I managed to grab by the collar and pulled him out, and we tried to call him down.

[93] He was just walking in circles.

[94] He was in panic mode.

[95] And then I called the police.

[96] And I said, hey, we're on the harbor.

[97] We're stuck.

[98] You guys have to come get us.

[99] And the lady was just, she didn't know what to say.

[100] She said, I'm sorry, we can't come get you.

[101] Everything was in flames and they were overwhelmed.

[102] I hung up.

[103] And I just remember seeing debris falling from the sky.

[104] And our bag kept catching on fire.

[105] Miraculously, I saw my phone.

[106] I had one bar of service.

[107] So I was trying to call my best friend, Yassim.

[108] And I told my best friend, hey, I love you.

[109] Tell everybody I love them.

[110] going to be okay.

[111] You know, here's my mom's number.

[112] Don't call her now.

[113] Wait, you know, let her sleep.

[114] Were you preparing because you thought you might not make it?

[115] Oh, yeah.

[116] We didn't think we were going to make it.

[117] And after I hung up with him, I called the police again.

[118] And she gave me the same answer.

[119] She said, I'm so sorry.

[120] And, you know, I could feel the frustration in her voice.

[121] She was just help, but she didn't know.

[122] And I felt so bad for her because she probably had so many calls like this.

[123] And so I hung up again, and I was just friends.

[124] And I was just frustrated.

[125] So at this point I thought maybe I could get in the harbor messers had the little house.

[126] Damon had a knife with him and he cut the screen off and I started punching the window with all my strength, all my strength.

[127] And so I fractured my hand.

[128] The window was so thick.

[129] You wouldn't even do anything.

[130] And so I called the police the third time.

[131] And I said, if you guys don't come right now, we're going to die.

[132] And she said, you guys have to jump into water.

[133] And I said, no way.

[134] He wants to jump in a hurricane at night, like with all this smoke.

[135] Like, there's no way we can jump.

[136] The water was crazy.

[137] And she said, you have no choice.

[138] You have to jump in the water.

[139] And I hung up and I looked at Damon.

[140] It's like, we have to jump.

[141] And Damon said, there's no way I'm jumping.

[142] I'm not jumping.

[143] And I told them, listen, either we burn or we drown.

[144] And, you know, I waited a couple more minutes.

[145] I tried to convince them.

[146] And I said, you know, I'm jumping.

[147] There are rocks, maybe 100 feet away or 150 feet.

[148] And I finally made it.

[149] And I looked back and I screamed at Damon and he was just terrified.

[150] He was not, you know, he was next to the dog.

[151] And I told him jump and I kept screaming.

[152] And he just didn't want to.

[153] And I could see him hanging on to the harbor with half his body in the water.

[154] And I kept screaming, you need to let go.

[155] You need to let go.

[156] And he screamed, my shoes are too heavy.

[157] And so I just made the decision to jump.

[158] and go get him.

[159] So I got back in the water and I got back next to him.

[160] I tried to go and take his shoes off, but I can't even find his feet.

[161] The ocean was just pushing me against the wall.

[162] And I told him, you have to follow me. I see.

[163] And the way he was swimming, I said, there's no way he's going to make it.

[164] He was just struggling, just swelling, water, and coughing.

[165] And somehow he managed to get very close to the rock and I pulled him up.

[166] You know, he's overweight and he's, you know, older.

[167] It was a miracle.

[168] And, you know, we still had debris falling on us and we had a wave just coming over us.

[169] We were holding onto the rocks to not, like, get pulled or sucked in by the ocean.

[170] It was just a nightmare.

[171] And then I heard a dog screaming.

[172] So I was like, I have to go back and I jumped back in the water.

[173] You know, I try to get back on the harbor.

[174] He was laying against the wall his eyes closed and it's just screaming and there's no way I could carry him was a big pit bull and I had one you know my hand was fracture or broken so I thought if I try to grab me in the water he's already freaked out we're both going to drown you know he's going to die for sure and I'm probably not going to make it so in one of my bags I had a blanket and I dipped it in the ocean five or six times and I put it on top of the dog that's all I could do and I took one of my bags and I jumped back in the ocean and then I almost drowned.

[175] I was just so exhausted and I panicked halfway.

[176] And I was praying to God he's helped me and I thank God I made it to the jetty and I went back on the other side and I talked to him and he was not answering and I grabbed his hand and he just held my hand and he was just in shock.

[177] and then maybe an hour after that I saw a light you know far away and I told Damon I said hey I think there's a boat over there and we were like screaming I was screaming at the top of my lungs and they were like coming towards like thank God and it was the code guard and they were like we can't get close you guys have to jump in the water you know because it was so rough they were crashing the rocks and I jumped first and they got me in I just lay down on my back and I could just see Amber just falling on us Like the sky had no stars The amber was the stars Red stars In the sky That's what it looks like Just a black sky with red stars It's just falling down I was flowing on the ocean But I felt like I was floating in space I was thanking God Thank you Thank you, thank you I don't deserve this I really just It was just unbelievable that we made it.

[178] And Damon, man, he managed to make it.

[179] And I was like, thank God.

[180] We made it.

[181] And I said, oh, how did you guys find us?

[182] And they said, we got a call that someone might be on the harbor.

[183] So I think that lady, you know, she relayed the call and finally got to us.

[184] And so thank God we made it.

[185] And he said, oh, no, not yet.

[186] We still have to go through the storm.

[187] And I said, where are we going?

[188] And he said, we don't know, everything's on fire.

[189] And I looked behind me, and it was just, it was just, it was just, it looked like war.

[190] It was just flames up to the sky, the whole, I mean, the whole town and the darkness.

[191] So we got to Maui High School.

[192] They made a shelter there.

[193] And then when we arrived, of course, we were, like, covering suit and all black.

[194] So everyone was looking at us.

[195] and I was barefoot, but people kept turning my feet.

[196] Everybody knew, you know, we're the ones who survived.

[197] You know, everybody that was in the shelter or the lucky ones.

[198] After the break, senior producer Lindsay Garrison shares an update on Idris, a survivor of Lahaina's fire.

[199] It's still very fresh.

[200] Really, honestly, until this day, it feels like it was yesterday.

[201] You know, I'm at a hotel, and no one knows what's next, actually.

[202] I called Idris back in late November.

[203] He talked to me from a hotel.

[204] He said he'd been living in hotels for more than three months, waiting for FEMA to secure him an apartment.

[205] Have you been moved from hotel to hotel since we talked?

[206] Yes.

[207] Yes.

[208] Oh, my goodness.

[209] How many hotels?

[210] Two, and I actually ended up because they made a mistake and I ended up homeless for a night.

[211] So, yeah, it's been hard for everyone.

[212] And I'm not blaming FEMA or, you know, I know they don't know.

[213] But it's very hard for us.

[214] And it's really hard to live in a hotel room for that long.

[215] You know, you even get down all the day.

[216] Not the most, the best lifestyle.

[217] And also, like, if you leave your hotel room for more than two or three days, then you lose that room, you know, so you can't even go and visit family.

[218] You can't do anything.

[219] It really feels like we're in jail.

[220] Do you do anything to give yourself some relief from just feeling stuck?

[221] Oh, she don't want to know.

[222] Absolutely nothing.

[223] I'm just in my room every day.

[224] You know, everyone's displaced.

[225] Some of my friends are on the other side, and you're like, you know, you don't have a car.

[226] And, you know, it's kind of hard to just go to the beach by yourself.

[227] Yeah.

[228] Yeah, it's a weird feeling.

[229] You know, I have multiple friends that move.

[230] love their job, love their homes.

[231] I personally love my job as well because I'm in this place.

[232] And, you know, a lot of us are still mourning and, you know, they're still in shock.

[233] And they're reopened for tourists.

[234] But it's kind of like attending a funeral and you're having a party next door.

[235] Like you're walking and everyone's happy and everyone's drinking and, you know, and music and you're just there and you feel like a ghost like not really in the mood so it's a weird feeling yeah it's gonna be a long time before the high and I give back to how it was and it's never going to be how it was did you ever find anything out about the pit bull that you tried to save no so my cat's still missing and then the pit bull is still missing I still have a little hope I know my friend, they just found her cat like a week ago.

[236] Really?

[237] Yeah, they're still finding a lot of paths.

[238] So I don't know if my cat was as fortunate, but people are telling me that to lose hope.

[239] I hope they both turn up.

[240] Me too.

[241] Me too.

[242] I really hope so.

[243] Yeah.

[244] Can you sort of envision what your ideal future or your ideal life would look like there in the coming months?

[245] Well, it's hard because I was living my dream.

[246] before all this happened.

[247] So it's hard for me to think of a better situation that I had before, you know.

[248] But I think my hope would be, you know, to get my place and then hopefully find my cat and then start moving down from there.

[249] It's just, it's kind of hard right now to imagine about anything.

[250] Yeah.

[251] And that's the hardest part.

[252] The hardest thing is not to know.

[253] Today's episode was produced by Lindsay Garrison and Sydney Harper.

[254] It was edited by Liz O 'Balen and Michael Benoit, with help from Lexi Diao.

[255] Contains original music by Marian Lazzano, Rowan Nemistow, and Dan Powell, and was engineered by Alyssa Moxley.

[256] That's it for the Daily.

[257] I'm Sabrina Tavernisi.

[258] See you tomorrow.