Coast Guard says it rescued 17 people who ran into ocean to escape the Lahaina wildfire
Hundreds of displaced Maui residents have taken shelter at the War Memorial Gymnasium, where the Red Cross, Maui County and other organizations are providing aid and supplies.
The fires have killed at least 67 people on Maui and left many more displaced.
Many of the residents at the War Memorial Gymnasium came from the historic town of Lahaina and fled with only the clothes on their backs. Some say they have been unable to locate their loved ones.
A grassroots effort to reconnect families has launched in front of the gymnasium, where Post-It notes containing contact information and names are pinned to a board.
Inside the shelter, scores of people have camped out on mattresses on the ground.
Kathleen Dukes, 46, was born and raised in Lahaina and said it was surreal to see her community in flames.
"I was in a state of shock. It really looks like a ghost town," Dukes said.Dukes had to leave her elderly mother behind when she fled the fire. She said was first able to speak to her mother on Friday. The home they share is still standing, though an aunt and sister's home was burnt down, Dukes said.
Lynn Robison, 66, lived in the heart of Lahaina, next to the Wharf Cinema Center.
After hearing about the fire, Robison and her friends went to the shoreline near the ocean, in case they needed to jump into the water. The group spent the night sleeping in a grassy patch next to the beach.
“When we woke up in the morning, everything was destroyed around us,” Robison said, “It was like a war zone.”Robison returned to her apartment complex to find it burned to the ground.
Nelen Cesar, 58, with her husband and three kids, told CNN they arrived at the shelter on Thursday after fleeing their home in Lahaina, where she had lived for more than 30 years.
Cesar and her family grabbed what they could as they evacuated but were distraught to lose family photographs and mementos from her childhood in the Philippines.
Her daughter returned to the location of the house and sent her pictures showing that it had been razed to the ground. Cesar said the loss is difficult to comprehend.
"I just want to see the evidence. I'm still hoping and praying it's still there," Cesar said.
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