Madera grad feeling effects from Lahaina fire

For The Madera Tribune

Madera graduate Ryan Martines stands with his girlfriend, Alicia Wintermeyer, left, and members of the Lahaina Swim Club where he has been coaching for the past two summers. However, the swim season was cut short after a wildfire swept through Maui and decimated the city of Lahaina last week.

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A fire started burning on Hawaii’s Maui island last week and quickly spread to burn 2,170 acres and has killed more than 100 people as of Wednesday.

While fire crews are still battling small pockets, the fire is about 85 percent contained, but the death toll will keep rising as responders enter the charred city of Lahaina on Maui.

The fire destroyed the city of Lahaina, the Hawaiian Kingdom’s capital and destroyed or damaged 2,200 buildings with more than 85 percent residential properties. It’s the deadliest U.S. wildfire since 1918.