Maui’s wildfire devastation breaking hearts here in Modesto | Opinion

Garth Stapley
·3 min read

It’s bad enough, watching Armageddon footage of fire destruction on Maui in every newscast as we do. For those who personally know and love that Hawaiian island, it’s even worse.

“I never expected anything this horrific. It breaks our heart,” said Turlock’s Jeani Ferrari, who has a timeshare in a condo that escaped the blaze only minutes from Lahaina, the epicenter of the apocalypse. That’s the historic beach town whose epic art galleries and quaint restaurants were reduced to rubble and ashes last week.

Wildfire wreckage on Aug. 10, 2023, along Front Street in Lahaina, Hawaii.
Wildfire wreckage on Aug. 10, 2023, along Front Street in Lahaina, Hawaii.

With at least 99 killed, Maui’s wildfires are the United States’ deadliest in a more than century.

Ferrari has visited Maui nearly every year for a dozen years or more, except during COVID-19 lockdowns, and became attached to eateries and wait staff. It’s mind-blowing to think that nearly all shops vaporized in minutes, she said, including her favorite business, Vintage European Posters on Lahaina’s fabled Front Street. “It’s unimaginable,” the shop said in a Facebook post.

Opinion

“The servers at the restaurants no longer have jobs,” Ferrari said, because the restaurants no longer exist. “The people who deliver the food, the truck drivers — it goes on and on, and no one has work now. Many lost families, friends and homes. I can’t imagine how the economy will recover. It’s overwhelming.”

Modesto’s Mike Minson and his family have been regular visitors for decades to the islands, and their favorite is Maui. Or was.

Front Street, Lahaina, Maui in March 2023, before fire destroyed this section of the town in August 2023.
Front Street, Lahaina, Maui in March 2023, before fire destroyed this section of the town in August 2023.

They stayed in Kaanapali, just north of Lahaina, in March. His daughter, Breanne Ash, also of Modesto, is handy with a camera and snapped photos of Front Street lined with happy tourists and eclectic shops, virtually all lost last week. They include the one where they bought shirts, and the Cheeseburger in Paradise they dined in only weeks ago, and Lappert’s Ice Cream next to the town’s famed Banyan tree, which CBS News says is “heavily charred — but still standing.” She also captured the coast’s famous sunsets.

Lahaina, Maui is known for its beautiful sunsets, like this one captured by Breanna Ash of Modesto in March 2023.
Lahaina, Maui is known for its beautiful sunsets, like this one captured by Breanna Ash of Modesto in March 2023.
Branson Ash, son of Breanna Ash, in front of Lappert’s Ice Cream next to Lahaina’s famed banyan tree in March 2023.
Branson Ash, son of Breanna Ash, in front of Lappert’s Ice Cream next to Lahaina’s famed banyan tree in March 2023.

“The devastation of Lahaina Town is total; there is nothing left, but the memories of our time with all of you,” the burger shop said to customers in a Facebook post. Martin Lawrence Galleries, another Front Street anchor, posted: “The people of Maui have suffered unspeakable loss and it is far from over.”

“To see Lahaina flattened, all the destruction, it’s just devastating to me personally,” Minson said. “Maui has a special place in our hearts. It’s a tough thing to see on TV, and one of the saddest moments is knowing we won’t have those experiences again with that old-time Hawaiian flavor.”

The hall of historic Waiola Church in Lahaina and nearby Lahaina Hongwanji Mission are engulfed in flames along Wainee Street on Aug. 8, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii.
The hall of historic Waiola Church in Lahaina and nearby Lahaina Hongwanji Mission are engulfed in flames along Wainee Street on Aug. 8, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii.

Denny Jackman of Modesto knows Lahaina, too, although the properties he owns are on Moloka’i. That’s the island between Maui and touristy Oahu.

In the years he’s been going to Hawaii, Jackman has seen drought make conditions ripe for wildfire ruin, especially on the drier west ends of all the islands. It’s a hallmark of climate change, said Jackman, who helped found Ecology Action in 1970.

“So many things we do in a stupid way because we think we rule the earth, but we don’t. We’re not in command,” Jackman said. “We think we dominate everything, but we can’t.”