For days now, families have struggled to learn the status of loved ones in West Maui. Spotty-to-nonexistent phone reception, especially in the aftermath, made it hard for survivors to contact loved ones. Families of Maui's missing endure agonizing wait:
Parishioners attend Mass at Sacred Hearts Mission Church in Kapalua, Hawaii, Sunday, Aug. 13, 2023. Sacred Hearts Mission Church hosted congregants from Maria Lanakila Catholic Church in Lahaina, including several people who lost family members in fires that burned most of the Maui town days earlier. Thomas, a beloved aunt with a great smile who loved outdoor adventures, was last heard from Tuesday as fires overwhelmed Lahaina, Hawaii, her longtime home.
As of Saturday, officials had confirmed the identities of only two victims and had barely started searching the disaster zone with canine teams. Officials attributed the pace of the response, which many residents have criticized as too slow, to the overwhelming nature of the destruction and to Maui’s remoteness, which complicated the arrival of out-of-state search teams.
For some residents, agonizing waits have ended in relief. Noelle Manriquez, who lost her house in Lahaina but made it to safety with her husband and three children, said it took three days for her to learn her parents had also survived. That time, she said, was “very hard, very stressful.”Chief John Pelletier of the Maui Police Department urged people searching for loved ones to take a DNA test that could help identify their remains.
But Terri Thomas, 62, had no family in Hawaii, meaning there is no one to go to the support center on Maui to give a DNA sample to authorities. And when Terra Thomas, who lives more than 4,000 miles away, has called seeking information, she said she has encountered “busy phone lines and unavailability.”
The Troupes fled their home in Lahaina on Tuesday night with their two huskies, evacuating to a spot north of town before they were told once again to move farther from the flames. They slept in their cars on a dirt road. One of those texts was from a cousin in Ohio, informing Troupe that she planned to list her as a missing person if she did not hear back soon. The cousin eventually did so, posting about the couple on Facebook and asking if anyone had seen them.
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