Lahaina, Maui, once the capital of the Hawaiian kingdom, is a picture-perfect representation of beauty. The sun shining, waves crashing, and whales breaching are breathtaking. Tourists flock to the valley isle to unwind and relax from their hectic lives, while locals exude deep-rooted pride in the island and share the renowned aloha spirit with millions of visitors each year. This idyllic landscape forever changed on Aug. 8, 2023, when an extreme wind event coupled with low humidity and dry grasses ignited and became known as the West Maui Wildfires.
At approximately 1900 the Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Team Maui (MST) received a call indicating numerous people had been forced into the ocean to escape flames from the burning town of Lahaina. This particular Tuesday evening, Lt. Brian Christina, the detached duty supervisor, was at home spending time with his family when he got the call. "Lahaina is on fire and over 100 people have been forced into the ocean," Lt. Christina recalls. “Without hesitation I told my wife I had to go in and left the house immediately.”
The MST is a three-person unit tasked with carrying out Sector Honolulu’s Marine Safety mission across the four islands of Maui County. Additionally, the team fulfills Incident Command Structure (ICS) positions at the Maui County Emergency Operations Center (EOC). As an isolated unit the team works tirelessly to establish and maintain partnerships with the Maui County EOC staff, maritime stakeholders, and a variety of State and local agencies. This emphasis was put to the test that evening as an all-hands on deck response was beginning to take shape.
Realizing this situation was escalating quickly from a manageable fire to a full-blown disaster, it was clear to CWO Drew Wall, MST Maui’s Marine Inspector, that this was a major incident from the moment he arrived to the EOC. “I entered and saw assistant fire chiefs, police LT’s, mayors’ staff, the EOC managers, and mid-grade National Guard officers, and proceeded to where the Coast Guard normally resides during training. Though this was unlike any training. Everyone remained calm but the air was thick with anxiety.”
Supporting Station Maui
With CWO Wall liaising at the EOC, Lt. Christina reported to Station Maui to serve as an on-site liaison officer. “At first my role was to report to Station Maui and assist in any way possible. I was looking for all ways to help the crew who were amidst a harrowing search and rescue (SAR) operation. The help they needed became clear right away. Keep the Sector Honolulu Command and our stakeholders at the EOC informed. For the first 2-3 hours I was inundated with calls. The phone was either on my ear or it was ringing – it was insane. But I was happy to help. If I wasn’t serving this role, it likely would have fallen on the XPO (Executive Petty Officer), who was managing the SAR.” said Lt. Christina.
The Station small boat crews were relaying catastrophic levels of damage as they initially arrived on-scene, and the Lieutenant was starting to feel the weight. “We got the radio transmission that Historic Lahaina Harbor was completely destroyed – almost impossible to comprehend. So much of our work at MST Maui was conducted there. So many professional relationships and memories were forged there. My heart and mind were truly all over the place in that moment. It was heartbreaking,” said Lt. Christina.
Station Maui boat crews exhausted all efforts and operational capabilities to support the survivors directly, and the MST was alongside supporting the primary mission in any way they could. But the magnitude of the event began to expose some limitations in the Coast Guard's response. Station Maui is a “one-boat” Station which means they are only resourced to respond with a single small boat and crew at a time. Despite the boat crew's heroic effort, it was clear that more help was necessary. “While the first crew was underway CWO Wall and I developed a plan to solicit help from our commercial vessel operators. This was unprecedented, and something I would have never imagined could become a possibility. But the reality was that a single CG vessel on-scene was not enough,” said Lt. Christina. Christina and Wall quickly connected with four crews of commercial vessels that were prepared to assist in the response, applying the mantra "throw out the playbook." These vessels coordinated on-scene with Station Maui and were able to provide safe haven for three souls, including two young children. Further, they ensured Station Maui could remain on-scene continuing their valiant efforts as long as possible. This included deploying a surface swimmer ashore to help the fire department escort trapped as well as carry non-ambulatory victims to safety.
Supporting the effort
As his counterpart worked diligently at Station Maui, CWO Wall played a vital role in the EOC. “During this time, I was coordinating with the Maui County Department of Transportation to stage buses for any survivors the Coast Guard or volunteer operators would bring back to Station Maui,” said CWO Wall. Further, in the early morning hours of Aug. 9th a lot of assets were arriving on-scene to support the mission. CWO Wall recounts, “CG Station Maui 45-foot boat, CGC Joseph Gerczak, CGC Kimball and their small boat, two Aviation Survival Technicans (AST’s) who were transferred to work on the surface assets, a CG H-65, two Navy Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM)-37 H-60’s, and State and County had three jet skis and one 23-foot jet boat.”
“As Coasties our job requires that we respond to disasters,” said CWO Wall. “It is in our blood and culture as a service to do this. We will deploy in a moment’s notice. The strange thing is when the disaster happens where you live and to people that you know and are closely connected with.”
Today, much of Maui’s west side remains in ruins. The rebuild will take years and the pain for those directly affected will likely last a lifetime. However, despite the fires that ravaged the island that fateful night, the aloha spirit of the town persists. Maui No Ka Oi (is the best). Bravo Zulu to Station Maui's search and rescue efforts, MST Maui, and, of course, all the Federal, State, and County responders, local supporters, and volunteers who answered the call.
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