Caused by a fallen powerline in early August, the Lahaina fires in Maui burnt down a beautiful place that many call home, leaving millions in shock and difficulty.

The fire made many locals leave behind their homes, valuables, and resources that they depended on to live. Over 7,000 people have been moved to hotels and AirBnBs due to the loss of houses and evacuation status. 

“I have some distant family on Maui, but nothing extreme happened to them,” US history teacher and Hawai’i native Andrew Homatu said. “My dad actually flew over there to go help.”

The fires affected many more people than just those living on the island. This caused the community from all over, to come together to help get through the difficult time.

“I think that the fire was talked about a lot because almost everyone knows Maui and a lot of people visit it,” junior Soleil Delgadillo said. “It went all over the news.”

The Maui fires being reported on by a wide number of news channels meant Americans could see the fires real time in photos and videos. Hawaiioceanproject.com states that Lahaina gets over a foot of rain each year, in one city, where in the north coast of california gets five feet making Lahaina a very wet climate for a fire.

“It was unexpected that Hawai’i – which I think of as a rainforest, which usually receives a lot of water each year – would suffer from wildfires like we do,” English 2 and 3 teacher Nicole Taylor said. 

Many essentials and items used everyday have been lost. People have donated to charities and organized events.

“And if they need it, they need it, hopefully they’ll be communicated,” Homatu said.