Interviews about Maui Wildfires
We know about the wildfires that happened on Maui Island. We connected with a few people on Maui Island to interview them about their experiences and how we can help.
The first person is Vesta Morris who is the president of the Maui Deaf Friends non-profit organization.
[first interview begins]
Renca: We want to say that our hearts are pained by what’s happening in Maui. We can see that there’s great damage. Can you explain how you feel and your perspectives?
Vesta: Okay. From what I’ve seen on TV and on Facebook, I’m heartbroken. I’ve cried and cried. It is really bad. The damage looks similar to when the U.S. military dropped a bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. The destruction was complete and only ashes were left. It is similar here. I feel like Maui is no more. So I’m crying and crying. I don’t know if Maui will come back again. It will take a long time to rebuild. The fires started in the Upcountry. Lahaina started burning at 4:00 a.m. on Monday or Tuesday. The fires spread very quickly. From here, I saw that the fires started in the mountains, in the Upcountry, and spread. Kihei and Kula started burning too. Olinda was on fire two days ago. So it is a lot of places. We had strong winds of about 65 to 70 mph. The winds fanned the flames. Why did it burn? The trees and plants are very dry. They have been left alone for many years. We haven’t had much rain. So it’s sad and global warming is to be blamed. The fires are getting worse and it’s sad.
Renca: Do you know if any deaf people and their homes are affected?
Vesta: In Lahaina? Yes. One of them was lucky and smart. They looked at their phone to check a Climate-NOCCA app and saw that winds were between 65 and 70 mph. That person quickly packed things and got their family to evacuate. As they drove, they saw fires around them. Police officers told them to evacuate quickly and they were lucky. Thank God they arrived safely at my friend’s home. That’s just one family. I think there are at least seven, up to ten or even fifteen people who are stuck in Lahaina. We have no way of contacting them and there is no electricity. I’m praying for their safety.
Renca: I’m asking another question. How can we, the Deaf community around the world watching this video, help the Deaf community in Maui? Are there ways to support you?
Vesta: Absolutely. I’m so thankful. Maui Deaf Friends said they accept donations. But no cash, no personal checks. You can donate Subway cards — gift cards. We accept that. Walmart cards are good. Target and Home Depot / Lowe’s are good too. I want to say many, many thanks. Mahalo is a Hawaiian word that means, “Thank you.” Thanks for the support. We at Maui Deaf Friends (officers) are very worried about Lahaina deaf people and their survival. For those Lahaina deaf survivors, please contact Nani Watanabe. She will contact me and I will give them what they need. Okay?
[first interview ends]
Renca: As you can see at the end of Vesta’s interview, she mentioned that Deaf survivors need to get connected to a woman named Nani Watanabe. She is a hearing woman who is retired but used to work as Independent Living Specialist for people with disabilities on Maui island and she worked closely (and still does) with the Deaf community in Maui. Related to the Maui wildfires, she has been helping the Deaf community with communication access and is connected to a FEMA agent so Deaf people can get the support they need. Here is a brief interview with her.
[second interview begins]
Nani Watanabe: So, what happened… I’m also the chairperson for Maui County Commission on Persons with Disabilities. I also sit on the state rehabilitation council for Hawaii. My expertise is really making sure that services are accessible for all disabilities individually. I find it frustrating that many times, the Deaf community or other disabled individuals and their communities — people just don’t listen to them. I feel that deaf people need more support in being provided with live interpreters for services. For example, as recently as yesterday, I talked with our mayor’s office. I asked the ADA coordinator if they were familiar with communication access. They said “yes.” But many people can say “yes” but do they really understand their roles? They are the ones who need to contact interpreters. It’s really important to have an interpreter available and prepared because things happen fast. When I saw that they didn’t have that support, it really frustrates me. Yesterday I jumped in myself and contacted all the certified interpreters and asked whether the Maui County office contacted them because the government was going to give a public statement on TV shortly. The (interpreters) said no, they weren’t contacted. I was angry. But fortunately, I contacted the mayor’s office directly and got in touch with a communications person. They said, “Thank you, Nani.” I gave them a name and an interpreter was contacted and connected. Yesterday there was an interpreter. Wow. But do you see the frustration? That means you shouldn’t wait until the last minute. Because if it is an emergency office, you should have a list ready. No excuses. If there are deaf or disabled people who need help, there should be a list ready.
[second interview ends]
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Renca: We also interviewed Gary Hall, a Deaf resident of Maui since 2014. He has been heavily involved with bringing food, water, and resources to shelters. He has been helping search for Deaf residents in the Lahaina area.
[third interview begins]
Gary Hall: My role in this situation is to provide support to the community: deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing. I provide water, food and clothing. Whatever they need in the shelters. Lahaina was the hardest-hit area by the wildfires. I listened to stories of people who jumped into the ocean to escape the flames. People ran on the streets. I also listened to stories of people dying from the fires because they were asleep. They didn’t know and it was too late. We are still searching for several people in that area who are deaf. Unfortunately, we are not able to provide them with any kind of support because the internet is down. There is no way to contact them right now. So we are waiting to be able to access, to be able to connect with some people in our community who we haven’t seen since. Right now, many people have lost their homes. Their lives. Some are searching for their family members. They are searching for about 1,000 people who are still missing. They can’t find them. So right now, most of the food and water that is provided is from people who live here in areas that were not impacted by the wildfires. So many people gathered their things and brought them to the shelters. A shelter that I visited is at the Maui high school. They’ve set it up on their basketball court. People are sleeping on the floor. When I visit, I try to use a sign with the word, “Deaf” on it. I check to see if anyone comes to me but nobody has come yet.
[third interview ends]
Renca: Gary said the best way we can support right now is to continue praying for Maui, give gift cards like Vesta mentioned, and keep yourselves updated from the Maui Deaf Friends Facebook group. In this transcript, we added the link to their Facebook information. We also added Maui Deaf Friends’ mailing address if you want to send gift cards or money order or cashier check to Maui Deaf Friends organization so they can help Deaf people on Maui island. We want to thank Vesta, Nani, and Gary for their time. Our hearts go to Maui and the people affected.