100. The Spark (S11: Animals of the Maui Wildfires)

Episode 1/4 Series 11  Animals of The Maui Wildfires Transcript

Welcome to the 100th episode of The Deal with Animals. I am so pleased to bring you this "something more" episode of TDWA. With the help of Audio Engineer, John Lasala, we have been able to bring you this four-part story of the days and weeks after the devastating wildfires in Maui in 2023, from the perspective of five staff members of Maui Humane Society.

Please take a moment now and visit Donate to Maui Humane Society
a special joint page set up my MHS in partnership with TDWA to raise money for MHS' continues efforts for the animals of Maui.

Thank you to All the staff of Maui Humane Society for the dedication to the animals of Maui but in particular, thank you to the guests of this series who shared their stories.
Follow the Blog and/or the Newsletter for full bio's and links

• Moani Makaiwi was one of the first animal rescuers on scene during the tragic Lahaina fires. Between her strong family history in Lahaina as a native Hawaiian and her dedication to rescuing animals as a Humane Enforcement Officer, Moani's story is truly one that you will not forget.
• Emily Drose is one of MHS' two Fire Cat Specialists. In this role, she has worked closely with the feeding/trapping team in the burn zone and manages the cats' movement once in the care of MHS.  She was born and raised on Maui, with a background as a large animal veterinary technician, lead emergency vet tech, ( Hawaii's first ) community cat coordinator ,community outreach and humane enforcement.
• Johnny Lingao is Maui Humane Society's Wildfire Community Liaison. In this role, Johnny works directly with displaced Lahaina residents and those affected by the fires to get them what they need to keep their pets, whether that be veterinary care, pet housing deposits, supplies, food, etc.
• Jenny Miller The Director of Development of MHS at the time of the wildfires and my guide around the Maui Humane Society campus in October 2023 
• Katie Shannon worked at Maui Humane Society for 3 years, including Director of Marketing and Communications during the fires in August 2023. Katie's background is in media and marketing strategy
  
  
  Other Links
  AP News 
  Compassion Fatigue
  Greater Good
  Bissell Pet Foundation
  Shelterly

Show Credits⁠⁠⁠⁠ Thank you also to John Lasala for his beautiful music and audio engineering on Series 11!

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Transcript

 Introduction to the 101st Step
Marika: This is The Deal with Animals. I'm Marika Bell, anthrozoologist, CPDT dog trainer, and an animal myself. This is a podcast about the connection and interaction between humans and other animals 

Our journey begins with the 101st step.

The 101st step is a symbol of continuing energy inspired by certain Japanese traditions, particularly within the martial arts communities. As I approach the milestone of the hundredth episode of the deal with animals, I recalled this idea taught to me by my mentor in Aikido.

Aikido, a martial art that emphasizes harmonizing with an opponent to resolve conflicts peacefully, embodies this concept perfectly. The 101st step Signifies the continuation and growth that follow the initial hundred steps. Reflecting the accumulation of experiences and lessons that shape our path forward.

This series represents my hundred and first step.

[00:00:39] Marika: Coinciding poetically with the hundred and hundred and first episodes. It seems fitting, perhaps even fated, that my mentor, Cook Sensei, a Hawaiian native, should influence this journey.

I invite you to join me on this 101st step, a journey we share not only for ourselves, but also for the animal rescuers of Maui Humane Society.[00:01:00]

As I reflect on my first visit to Maui Humane Society, two months after the Lahaina wildfires, I am reminded of the concept of the 101st step. My discussions with the staff resonated deeply with this idea. Although the fires themselves had ended, the disaster continued in the trauma experienced by both people and animals.

Yet, there were individuals on the island who moved forward, taking everything they had learned from the past and stepping into recovery. While a hundred signifies completeness and the culmination of effort, a hundred and one represents pushing beyond limits, carrying forward the impacts and lessons of what has come before.

By taking the 101st step, we emphasize that the stories and lessons from the Maui wildfires are not just to be remembered, but to be integrated into our lives, influencing our actions and decisions moving forward. With this in mind, I invite you to hear the stories of the staff who were there during the fires, who entered the burn zone while the ground [00:02:00] was still hot and the buildings were still burning, to save animals.

This story is not appropriate for all listeners, and while we remain respectful of the privacy for those who lost their lives, some details may be upsetting. Please be gentle with yourselves and take breaks if needed. The intention of this series is not to dwell on the disaster, but to highlight the heroic efforts of Maui Humane Society to save lives and reunite families.

[00:02:26] Marika: And along the way, we will learn about Hawaiian culture, family, and the bond we share with the animals in our lives. This is The Deal with Animals. I'm Marika Bell, anthrozoologist, CPDT dog trainer, and an animal myself. This is a podcast about the connection and interaction between humans and other animals. 

Many of you might have explored the vibrant landscapes of Hawaii, perhaps wandered through the historic districts of Lahaina on Maui, For those less familiar, let's dive into a story that begins here, in a place where the sun meets the sea. 

Like so many others, witnessing the chaos through evening broadcasts, I felt a profound sadness.

Maui, a sanctuary for so [00:03:00] many seeking tranquility, had transformed overnight into a ground zero of trauma. In the wake of disaster, communities often face compounded tragedies, not only the loss of homes and loved ones, but also the displacement of companion animals amidst the turmoil. For Maui, it was also a story of cultural loss.

The stories of the animals and those whose duty it is to find them often remain untold in more human focused disaster relief efforts. But these stories aren't separate from the human stories. Just like the animals we share our lives with, we also share our stories with, and in that connection, Maui Humane Society and the Deal with Animals have come together to make sure that those stories are told.

And as fate would have it, I had already planned a trip to Maui just two months after the fires. Maui Humane Society opened its doors for me. Jenny Miller, the then development director at MHS, guided me through their endeavors to rescue, recover, and reunify as many animals as possible [00:04:00] with their families.

My visit was complimented a month later in a call with Katie Shannon, then the director of communications. Yet, As I pieced together their insights, I felt like there was something missing. So I reached out to MHS again, eight months post disaster, and I was able to speak with staff members who had witnessed the immediate aftermath.

Through these five conversations, we'll gain a unique perspective on the resilience and enduring spirit of Maui's heart, its people, and their pets. Let's set the stage with a little background from Jenny during my visit to the MHS campus in central Maui.

The Team and Their Work

Jenny: Um, well, we incorporated in 1952, it was run by volunteers.

But we've been at this particular location for just over 30 years. It's gone through a couple of different locations. It was in Kahului, that's when everybody referred to it as the dog catcher. Very low live release rates, you know, a completely different organization back then because they were dealing with the tools that we had at the time.

We've become incredibly progressive over the [00:05:00] years and really thanks to the Davis Gerald Duck Field Foundation being massive supporters of ours. They've been able to provide us with the opportunities to build programs like our Wings of Aloha, sending animals off island.

[00:05:14] Marika: The Wings of Aloha program was initiated to address a unique challenge. In Maui, even with successful trap, neuter, and release efforts, there is a pet overpopulation issue, to bridge this gap. Homeless animals in Maui are flown to the mainland where eager animal welfare partners and awaiting new owners can offer them a fresh start. This inventive solution not only aids areas in need of assistance, but also ensures more animals find loving homes.

[00:05:41] Jenny: Our foster program, which is now incredibly robust, we're fostering almost 2,000 cats and 2,000 dogs a year. Um, that's the name of the game when you're trapped on an island in the middle of nowhere.

[00:05:56] Marika: In the next segment, we'll be joined by Moani Maki'iwi, who [00:06:00] stood at the forefront of animal rescue as one of the initial responders after the devastating fires. Throughout this series, Moani will share her firsthand experiences from those critical initial days. And the disaster's profound impact on her community.

I recently spoke with Moani, and she was telling me how the small brush fires, which Maui was not unfamiliar with during the dry season, used to be more easily contained, largely thanks to HCS.

[00:06:25] Moani: Uh, if I'm not mistaken, the acronyms were for Hawaiian Cane and Sugar as the cane fields. They were always just willing and ready, you know, if there was a firelight to hop on them because this is what they did, you know, they had the bulldozers, they had the water tankers, you know what I mean?

So, back in the past, you know, the fires didn't get out of hand, even if, you know, a smaller brush fire would spark. You know, it never reached the limits that it did. They looked at our water resource before they used to do the pre burns, early in the morning, [00:07:00] between 1 to 4 o'clock in the morning. You know, the precipitation was there to keep, you know, the moisture in the air.

So then, you know, you had a lower chance of a brush fire sparking from it. The winds would be calmer. This was just unexpected. And with the, the population growing and homes needing to be built, and then you have the typical Hawai'i home, which is multi generational in one home. Possibly a three, four bedroom, and you have about 15 to 20 people in there.

More vehicles, more, you know, just a little bit more of things. And it just became the fuel for the fires and the fact that the kids were out from school. I suppose it's a bit chaos.

[00:07:48] Marika: Maui's dry season stretches from April through October, peaking in the notably parched months of August and September.

Paired with other factors, like the widespread use of monocultural grass across [00:08:00] lawns, coupled with low level brush near critical infrastructure like power lines, poses significant risks. According to AP News, Hawaiian Electrical has acknowledged its downed line caused the initial fire, but it argued in court that it was not responsible for later flare ups.

[00:08:16] Marika: The article covers the timeline of the fires, and if you're interested in hearing specifically about that, the article is linked in the show notes. 

There are a few Hawaiian words you should be familiar with before we go on. The first is ohana, meaning family. This can mean blood related, adoptive, or intentional family.

Kanaka is a term reserved for Native Hawaiians. Keiki means children. Kuleana is concern or responsibility. And kahu means a guardian or protector, someone entrusted with something cherished. 

Okay, let's now do formal introductions so you know who's going to be speaking with us throughout the series. I'll be posting [00:09:00] all of the guests' biographies and pictures as I have them in the episode blogs on the Deal With Animals website, which you can connect to in the show notes or at the dealwithanimals.com. You've already heard from Jenny, my initial guide through the MHS facility..

[00:09:19] Marika: The next to introduce themselves will be Moani Makaiwi.

Emily Drose and Johnny Lingao. Three staff members who are still part of the team at Maui Humane Society

[00:09:28] Moani: name is Moani Makaiwi and I go by she, her? Me, nuh. My title is a Humane Enforcement Resource Officer.

I newly came into this position in November of 2023. Prior to that, I was just considered, I guess, you know, a Humane Enforcement Officer.

[00:09:52] Emily Drose: So aloha o Emily Ko'inoa. I am the current fire cat specialist here at Maui Humane [00:10:00] Society. I am a part of the fire response team that was created in direct response to the Lahaina wildfire.

[00:10:09] Johnny: Is Johnny Lingiao. My pronouns are he and him and I am the wildfire community liaison for Maui Humane Society.

This is Katie Shannon, the Director of Marketing and Communications at the time of the fires.

[00:10:20] Katie: My name is Katie Shannon and I use the pronouns she her.

[00:10:25] Marika: Now, let's hear a little bit more about how each of them came to work with Maui Humane Society and how they view their roles. We'll start with Katie.

[00:10:33] Katie: So, I came to Maui with my partner in July of 2019. So before COVID, before the Maui fires and had the honor of being a photographer on island and the way that I got involved with Maui Humane Society was offering my photography services for the animals, uh, so that they could, uh, have a better representation of being adopted.

So I [00:11:00] had met a director of development and marketing at the time, Jenny Miller, and she actually saw how I. photographed, uh, two of the animals that had won the cover of our annual calendar. And so after seeing kind of how I worked and how I interacted with that client, she said that she was looking for a marketing manager.

And we really hit it off, worked well together. And, Alongside another project that they had going on at the time for Petco I was able to deliver some video and images to help them win a fifty thousand dollar grant so after that it was a bit kismet and Was able to be promoted to the director of marketing.

So I was the director of Marketing and communications for about a year and a half And was holding that role during the Maui fires in august of 2023

[00:11:52] Marika: now, here is Emily Drose, our FireCat specialist and part of the reunification team.

[00:11:58] Emily Drose: I'm born and [00:12:00] raised here in Maui. Um, very fortunate to be born and raised here.

My background with MHS, I've been a vet tech for many years. I started just as a kennel assistant working my way up the chain. Um, I've worked as our community cat coordinator for two years, growing that program. I transitioned into humane enforcement. And then, you know, life kind of catches up to you in this field.

It's so Emotionally draining that I took a little bit of a hiatus, much needed, much needed if you want to be able to continue to, to do life and do this work. So at the time I actually wasn't working back at MHS when the fires happened. So that was August and with everything, the way everything rolled out, the way our community responded, I was very inspired to come back.

I was already kind of tossing the idea of coming back.

[00:12:47] Marika: And this is Johnny. He also wasn't working at Maui Humane Society during the wildfires. But he has a strong connection with Maui, so strong that he flew in as soon as he could to help. It was supposed to be temporary, but [00:13:00] he ended up staying.

[00:13:01] Johnny: Was the fact that Maui Humane Society turned into a,like a supply logistics center overnight.

The shelter was inundated with truckloads of donations, very much in gratitude for everyone around like the U. S. and around the world for showing their heart and their, their deep love and support for everyone here. But Maui Humane Society, you know, as a shelter, no one was equipped for that. And then for me, where I came in was I used to be in warehouse management.

I was forklift certified for like 10 years. I have these skills and attributes that I contributed. Where many people, when they see a truck that opens with various products and boxes and different dimensions, people may freeze. But for me, it's like, I see there's chaos, but I see beauty in it. And that's where I stepped up, not just [00:14:00] as a person who knows how to move product and how to organize and how to get the flow of things going, especially in regards to like donations and being inundated with so many supplies, as long as we can focus on what's there for the day.

We can show up the next day and continue on versus a free for all. We wanted efficiency. We needed efficiency. And we only had one pallet jack. And I knew that people would be burned out physically, mentally. So I said, hey, how can we be more efficient?

[00:14:31] Marika: And as it turned out, Johnny also had some experience in post disaster coordination.

[00:14:36] Johnny: I was actually living in Southern California. And the reason why. What's called to the Maui fire disaster was I've done disaster relief in California. Um, when I moved from Oahu to California about Eight years ago, I started diving more into volunteership and that leaned more with animals and with animal care and [00:15:00] to the other relation with me and Maui is I worked from Oahu remotely and then there are various people in Maui who are my customers and I also had old classmates from University of Hawaii that lived in Lahaina, so it was very much a personal thing, so I was not a volunteer with Maui Humane prior.

The reason why I volunteer with Maui Humane was because. When it came to previous experiences with disaster relief, I always felt that there was more of a need within the animal care space. And so when I would go to like a veterinary hospital, there was a fire in. Like the Malibu area, I think it was back in 2018, the Woolsey fire.

I went to veterinary angels, uh, veterinary angel, uh, hospital. And then there was a fire by Yosemite two years later, two or three years later, the Dixie fire. And I volunteered with the. Uh, Central California [00:16:00] Animal Disaster Team. And so when I approached how I can help with Maui, I knew immediately to go with, immediately to the Humane Society.

[00:16:10] Marika: Let's hear from Katie Shannon, whose role in communications was critical in the aftermath of the fire. How did she navigate her new position as the Public Information Officer?

[00:16:20] Katie: There's a lot that I had absolutely no idea what happened in the world of animal welfare during a crisis And so I went from you know being able to market and communicate animals, uh their stories the needs of the shelter to Being titled the public information officer, which I guess in animal welfare or just in crisis communications This is the person who is going to be receiving all of the information about what's happening that day You Sifting through it and also pushing it back out to the media or internally or to whatever outlet needs to hear it so my role [00:17:00] became Very public relations focused.

I was the face of the organization and communicating what Maui Humane Society was doing during the fires, what our plans were afterwards, but also providing the hope that people needed locally in order to understand what was happening, but also being able to ask for what the organization needed from the mainland.

Because of course we had thousands and thousands of people reaching out. Asking how they could help. So there was information that we put out right away to allow people to help that I think really was our saving grace. And I would say that within crisis communications, that is the first thing that anybody can do is to advise how people can help and make that a reality.

Clear on your website and clear on social media, because obviously you won't be able to handle the amount of communications that are coming individually to you because you're also dealing with the crisis yourself. [00:18:00]

Community Relationships

[00:18:00] Marika: Now, we haven't forgotten about Moani and we'll delve deeper into her story shortly. But first, let's paint a picture of the life shared by the animals on Maui prior to the devastating fire.

18:39

Unlike many tropical environments, free roaming dogs are a rare sight, thanks in part to diligent efforts by humane law enforcement. Companion cats on Maui are primarily indoor/outdoor, although all over Maui and many of the Hawaiian islands, there is a strong population of free roaming cats.

Unfortunately, many of these cats have not yet been spayed or neutered, and their numbers are bolstered by companion cats that have also not been spayed or neutered. This can be a huge problem in an island environment, particularly when there's a concern about native wildlife being impacted by free roaming domestic animals.

But cats and dogs are not the only animals on Maui. During my visit, I was lucky enough to meet the various animals that Maui Humane Society is able to shelter and find permanent homes [00:19:00] for. Jenny introduced me to ducks, rabbits, and even a large tortoise who has a permanent residence at MHS, named Freddy.

[00:19:08] Jenny: Yep, we get, um, guinea pigs, the odd chinchilla, we get goats, we've had peacocks, um, just, just random animals. That's it. And a lot of rabbits. A lot of rabbits. A lot of rabbits. And that's, that's definitely an issue when you're on an island. Um, so we spay and neuter all the rabbits, which is pretty intense for our surgery clinic because it takes so much longer to spay and neuter a rabbit than it does a dog or cat.

So we have to realize that if we're going to do two rabbits a week, we're possibly taking up the space of 10. Cats or five dogs, or so it's all, it's all a compromise in terms of scheduling.

[00:19:49] Marika: In addition to providing spay and neuter services for a variety of species, MHS is dedicated to finding new methods to significantly improve the welfare of animals in their [00:20:00] care.

This commitment involves continuous research and the implementation of innovative practices to ensure the highest standards of care are met.

[00:20:08] Jenny: So this is, you know, one of the things we're going to be focused on in the future is to get a better habitat for the rabbits and the guinea pigs. living in dog kennels up on a table, it gets very warm.

Not ideal. Yeah. Not the nicest. No, I mean, they shouldn't be kept in temperatures over 85 degrees and in the summer it's smoking hot here. I bet. So we've got water bottles that we freeze and we've got little ice pods and try and cool them down. But once we get our, our finances together and move on to another phase of getting this place better, this'll be a definitely a priority.

[00:20:43] Marika: And not just for the small animals, but for the dogs and cats as well.

[00:20:47] Jenny: A lot of the dogs go out on our Beach Buddies programs or our Dog on Demand programs where you can just show up and take a dog. It's awesome. It gives the dog an opportunity to have a break from the kennel. It's fun for, for people who want to just [00:21:00] take a dog to have that fun experience on the beach or up country.

And, you know, so many people miss their dogs when they're traveling. So that's always a fun program.

[00:21:08] Marika: You might now be curious about the number of dogs and cats under the care of Maui Humane Society at any given time. And make no mistake. MHS is always full.

[00:21:19] Jenny: We're full. We have 40 kennels. Um, we double up where we can.

We have a lot of dog selective dogs, but we have a new program and I'll show you where it is. Again, this is something that Kristen Hassan initiated.

[00:21:32] Marika: Interested in hearing more about Kristen Hassan from outcomes for animals in episode 78 of the deal with animals, speeding up the system, you can do just that.

She is a thought leader in this space and has helped numerous shelters all over the nation to find creative and practical ways to make their shelters more efficient.

[00:21:51] Jenny: She's been consulting for about a year for us. Initially, we brought her in to help us with our large at risk [00:22:00] dogs.

[00:22:01] Marika: And as we walked through the outdoor spaces, my eyes were drawn to a charming site and nestled by each of the dog kennel entrances, a series of stones, each painstakingly painted.

This artistic touch added a unique blend of color and warmth to our walk. And I wondered if there was a deeper meaning.

[00:22:19] Jenny: This was started by some volunteers. And then it was quickly picked up by more volunteers. And these are stones that they've painted since the fire. Lahaina Strong and Maui Strong, you'll see everything.

And they've just sort of put them around to make sure that everybody knows that we have support. You'll find them on the internet. They're all over the place. We also have kennels in the back. Except for animals that are highly stressed and being out in the general population too much. Medical cases.

Puppies, you know, it was about a week ago, we had ringworm in the cat ohana and parvo in the dog kennels. Oh god. Painful. Painful, why now? Yeah.

[00:22:56] Marika: Parvovirus is a highly contagious disease that strikes [00:23:00] dogs, often leading to severe gastrointestinal illness in puppies. Without timely supportive care, it frequently results in fatality.

Another condition, ringworm, is not a worm, but a fungal infection. It creates a notably itchy circular rash with clear skin in the middle, and interestingly can be transferred to humans. While not life threatening, it causes significant discomfort and historically was a major reason for the euthanization of cats and kittens in shelters.

Yet with proper vaccination or care, both dogs and cats can recover. At MHS, once dogs are healthy and vaccinated, they discover remarkable ways to alleviate their stress and uncover their unique personalities. Sorry if this next segment goes on a little bit, but I was delighted with the joy these volunteers took in learning about the dogs and giving them the best experience in the shelter possible.

[00:23:52] Jenny: Hi! What are you guys doing out here? This is new.

[00:23:55] Volunteers: Well, we decided we'd, uh, play out in the play yard.

[00:23:58] Jenny: This is [00:24:00] a good idea! So these are your catchment pens?

[00:24:02] Volunteers: Yes. Yes. Okay. Yes. Uh huh. And, so this is, yeah, this is the playgroup.

[00:24:07] Jenny: Oh, it is? Oh, good. Okay. So we have daily playgroup, but it's, the playgroup yard has been taken over by the cat pods, the fire cats.

Yes. And so, so this is temporary, but, but this is a great setup.

[00:24:18] Volunteers: And it works really well. Yeah. It's shared with the staff. It really does. Yeah.

[00:24:21] Jenny: Oh, I'm happy, I'm happy that you guys were able to be accommodated. Yes. It's an important program. Yes. Yes, it really, oh, very. Yeah. Yeah, I'm thinking. It's extremely helpful to get the dogs together.

[00:24:32] Volunteers: You know, it's not for us to play, it's for them to meet each other and see how they do.

You can really learn so much about dogs by watching them interact. It's awesome, plus they have fun. It's the best way to read what they're ready for and what they need next. And they change, they just come out of their shell.

They evolve, oh my god. I mean, I've seen ones, Evolved from bringing them out, like, like practically carrying them out, [00:25:00] to they're fine when they go. You know, they're, they're like, yeah, you know, this is fun. What I've seen, too, is they're, they might start out timid, but then once they relax and figure out what's going on, they turn, some dogs turn out to be the ones that you always want to be out there because they can make friends with every dog, but you don't know that till you.

Give them the space to develop and then they help everybody else relax and play and learn how to read each other Uh huh, you know, sometimes dogs don't know how to read dogs, right? And then they learn. They need a good correction? Then they learn while somebody's there to make sure nothing's going crazy.

I've seen him for like months. Eeyore? Yeah, Theo. Is Theo doing better? Yes, he is getting better. He was great on a luring course last week. Good. Oh, good. Theo, who completely, like, changed his personality. I mean, he was just always running. He wanted to play so much that all he did was chase the dogs. Right.

And then, [00:26:00] you know, after three or four weeks, he just got used to, Okay, well, this is just, you know, just hang out. And then we were able to transfer him to the mainland.

[00:26:09] Jenny: I saw him with the hose. He was funny. He, uh, he loved the hose. You literally, like, he was all four feet off the ground, like, trying to pull him away from the hose.

He just, he wrecked so many hoses.

[00:26:23] Volunteers: He had to be the last one on the luring course of the day, last one of the day, because he couldn't stop. He would be chasing it while you were re letting in, you know, he was just having so much fun. Oh yeah, he was every single time. Alright, thanks. Nice to meet you.

[00:26:39] Jenny: Good work you guys.

The purpose of dog day group is to keep dogs out of the kennel as much as possible during the day. So if they're not out on Beach Buddies or Dog on Demand or in foster, we're bringing them out in groups of three to eight at a time based [00:27:00] on, you know, Who gets along with who and play style and they'll spend two or three hours out here and we're actually going to fence it off so that we have several yards.

They've got the pools, they've got toys, they've got shade, they've got grass. If we can keep them out of the kennels as much as possible, we're going to be able to adopt them out. They're going to be healthier mentally. They're just going to continue to behave like a dog rather than being I hate to say it, but an inmate in a, in a cage.

Um, and that was one of the things that Kristen really helped us with was because we were finding that we're having adoptable animals come in. They're coming into a very, very chaotic environment. They're starting to decline mentally. They start to decline physically to the point where they start injuring themselves.

And at some point it's inhumane for us to continue to care for an animal who's doing that much damage to themselves. So Kristen's, uh, at risk dog protocol. It really helped us learn to put a step [00:28:00] by step process in place where there were safeguards every step along the way to ensure that we were maximizing a live outcome for every dog.

And that did include creating a team of volunteers that assisted us. There's a special at risk Facebook page that we have for dogs that we can say with full transparency. This dog will be euthanized at some point if we don't find a solution. And we don't have the luxury of being on the mainland where we can cross state lines or we can easily transport in a truck to a rescue here or there.

There are no rescues. There is no option.

29:04

[00:28:39] Marika: Despite the progressive nature of Maui Humane Society, It, like every person or organization in the world, has a past that carries baggage. This history can lead to misunderstandings and distrust within the community. Such distrust often arises from the historical context where municipal or even privately run shelters had contracts with local governments to [00:29:00] enforce laws around pet ownership and care.

Maui native Emily explains.

[00:29:05] Emily Drose: We had almost no resources, almost like some of our other smaller islands, so I think that the main role that we would play is you're out here for the strays, for the dangerous animals, responding to the dog bites, dog attacks, and then picking up anything that was deceased on the highway.

Which is an almost daily thing because of our free roaming cat population. We have a lot of pig and a lot of deer, but it wasn't even, if you would have looked back 20 years ago, it wouldn't have even been thought of that. We would be able to offer this type of response or even think about it because our options were so slim.

It was pick up as a stray. And euthanasia. Those were our only options at that time. 

Marika: Overcoming the history of a punitive relationship with your community can be a challenging journey, but one that the staff at MHS take head on. 

Emily Drose: What's hard is, like, we also kind of have to take a step back ourselves. [00:30:00] Like, we, we try to be as transparent as possible.

Um, it is such a small island. We try to get as much information out as we can. Coconut Wireless is definitely a thing. It's very real. Um, but there's always going to be that group of naysayers or those who may have had like a very bad experience in the past. And we're talking in that realm of 10, 20 years ago, even five years ago, that still have a bad taste in their mouth.

So we're still trying to mend those relationships and be like, listen, we're different. We've changed. We've grown. But I think it's, it's just human nature. Like no matter how much good and praise you get, which is a response. So big, there is that tiny group that is just a little bit louder in your head, just telling you you're not doing enough, you know, you have all this money, like, why aren't you doing more?

Why don't you do this? And when you chop it up, like, our average intake at one point was like 400 animals within either a month or two months. And if you look at Lahaina, [00:31:00] like, in just this short time frame, we had over 800 just in one short span of time. That's 800 additional animals on top of an already over capacity shelter.

It's like, it's not, it's just not as simple as people think it is. And it really just comes down to these open, like candid conversations. Like people come in here all the time, screaming, yelling, wanting to fight. And I'm like, listen, we can do all that. Or we can talk like, what's the concerns? Where are we at?

Why are we upset? What can we explain? And when people realize it was literally just myself and one other staff member, literally putting our hands on every single cat that came in and servicing the entire island, it just kind of puts things into a different perspective. It's like we are fighting for our lives out here, trying to keep these animals alive and trying to help you.

And in that same breath, what are you doing? How can you help? How can you extend your hand? And it's just, it's having those, you know, Candid conversations, but I do think overall the community [00:32:00] is aware that we are here to help. And we've spent a lot of time, boots on the ground, even before the fire, just trying to mend our relationship with the community and take a different approach.

Not everything has to be so harsh and so hostile. And for a while, every conversation it felt like was a de-escalation conversation. As we're now, it's a little bit more open.

Preparation

[00:32:24] Marika: Let's go back to the days just before the fire. It's dry season. And while brush fires have come and gone, the conditions are now extremely dry.

A severe windstorm is brewing and within a few hours a cell tower will go down, cutting off communications on the island. What kind of experience did the staff at Maui Humane Society have with such a situation? Moani will walk us through the day the fire began and the preparations MHS had in place ahead of time to ensure they could evacuate if necessary and help the community's animals when needed.

[00:32:57] Moani: Uh, Lahaina's fire [00:33:00] started on a Tuesday. I actually was off on Tuesday, but we also had another fire going on, uh, we called that one the Upcountry Fire. A lot of my co-workers, other officers, live upcountry, and so later that, you know, afternoon, I was asked by my director if I could cover after hour shift, which typically considers you on call from 8 pm. to 7 a. m. 

I was like, sure, no problem, you know, I'm working tomorrow anyways, so I think I was asked around 5 o'clock ish, and I was fully aware of the upcountry fire. Because from my apartment, I could see it, you know, to see the upcountry fire is basically my backyard. And around, I want to say around 6:30 ish, it just so happened I went out onto my lanai, my balcony, and I saw that the upcountry fire was proceeding to come down the mountain [00:34:00] now.

And where it was located, that part of the fire that was spreading downwards, was heading towards our shelter. It was, you know, pretty far away compared to where our shelter is located in Central. But, when I could see flames from my lanai, I'm like, Mmm, that's a bit concerning. And being the after hours officer, knowing that pretty much everyone had gone home for the day, I immediately called my director and I'm like, Hey, I think we need to go into the shelter, and I think we should go ahead, count, and just start preparing for a possible evacuation for our shelter, just in case that fire gets close enough.

Because we're located in the middle of farm fields and at that time across the street, there's a small business area and they're covered, you know, kind of with, uh, this grass that's tall and it was really dry. And so I was afraid that, you know, we had [00:35:00] that fuel for that fire across of us and it would have to hop.

Also, a highway to get to us. So I just wanted to be on the safe side. So I called her and she and I decided that we're gonna go into the shelter, we'll do a head count, you know, and then just started having every department for each building a manifest. So we knew how many animals we had, how many we would have to evacuate if needed, and then start calling around like, where can we take them?

Should we need to be evacuated? Now at the same time though, my folks, my, my parents were in Lahaina, or lives in Lahaina. So about, I want to say just before I was asked to do the overnight shift, my mom was [00:36:00] on Facebook Live.

They were in their personal car and they were in the middle of Lahaina town. My mom is from Lahaina. So I grew up in Lahaina. I come from a divorcee parents. So though I was raised on Moloka'i full time, because my mom lived Lahaina, I constantly went over on my own monthly holidays, vacations, that kind of thing.

So I grew up in Lahaina. Anyway, so my folks were on social media as she was… doing a live recording and she was amazed of how the embers that were falling on her vehicle and around her and they were downtown Lahaina. And I was watching it and I'm like, wow, this is crazy. This is so crazy. Why is there so much thick, white, gray smoke?

And I could see in her live, just embers huge as a rock, [00:37:00] probably as big as a softball, if not a baseball, falling around them and hitting their car. So, you know, I was like trying to figure out where my parents were at. Then I realized, oh shoot, you know, they're downtown Lahaina town. They're stuck in traffic, and my mom, she's panning around from right to left, because she's sitting in the front passenger seat, and my dad's driving, and my brother's in the back seat.

My mom's panning to show everyone, right, what she's seeing. And she's not paying attention, but I'm paying attention, and I see, in the rearview mirror, I see the black clouds of smoke, and it's coming their direction. In that moment, fear struck me, and I'm like, my folks are stuck in traffic, like, dead traffic.

I was like, what is going on? Like, what? In that moment of thinking that is when they lost cell coverage. So I didn't even know if my parents were alive or not. [00:38:00] The last I saw of them were my mom, you know, you could tell in her voice, she was kind of getting worried at that point. But not realizing the danger behind of her that already the fire had.

Come from the mountain side and came down towards the ocean side of where they were located at. And so moving forward though, you know, I'm the overnight officer and now my concern is our shelter. So I head over, met with my director here at our shelter and we start preparing. We start preparing for an evacuation for ourselves.

I probably, had I not been asked to come in, you know, or work the overnight shift, I probably would have gotten into my personal vehicle and drove into Lahaina town to go look for my parents before they even had shut it down or put up roadblocks. But we came down and I think I was here till like 3 o'clock in the morning and you could see the flames just looking at the hills of that mountain coming down.

And I'm like Oh, [00:39:00] please no. We had a bunch of folks that were here and everyone was willing and ready to go, didn't matter what we needed to do, but we were set and prepared. Thankfully, we didn't need to evacuate our shelter. The wind had changed direction. 

Marika: The wind changed direction, giving the staff at Maui Humane Society a brief reprieve.[00:39:21] While they never had to evacuate, they couldn't have anticipated how much worse things would soon become.

[00:39:27] Moani: So that night, you know, we had our first. Fire victim Katniss. Katniss came in around midnight-ish. By then, you know, we had let a lot of folks go because the shelter was set already. We had pop up crates ready to go, food.

So all we had to do was sound the alarm again to have the shelter needed to be evacuated. We saw a vehicle coming in because we're all kind of just sitting outside in our front parking lot and we're watching the off country fire. And all of a sudden we see AMR. It's the [00:40:00] company for our medics. And they come flying it in with their SUV and I'm like, wow, that's pretty cool.

That's pretty weird, like, this is kind of late, like, what are they doing here? And no one called. And, they roll up and they're like, hey, we got a dog from Lahaina. I'm like, wait, what? They're like, yeah, hey, um, the fireman earlier today, during You know, the initial fire coming down into the town from Lahainaluna Road.

They found this dog and this dog was just running in the fire and they were able to scoop her up and they just left her in the truck while they continued to fight the fire. When I looked into the vehicle, cause they're like, Oh, she's kind of big and we have her wrapped up in towels, but she's severely burned.

And I'm like, okay, okay, got it. You know, give me a few seconds. So myself and it just happened, the manager for our kennels. She was still here and [00:41:00] my fiance was there also at the time because he becomes my volunteer when I need him. And so when the vehicle showed up, I had to literally physically get into the SUV and muzzle her because she was in so much pain.

And we didn't have a vet on staff that night. I had to wait till we got her out in order to call our vet to come on in and we had to muzzle her. With a slip lead and carefully pick her up and just slowly move her out at the time then we have one of our carts right outside of the door of the vehicle and We scooped her up and you know passed her on to come out of the vehicle and then we will turn into our clinic So technically Katniss was our first Lahaina victim at our shelter

Conclusion (to be continued in episode 2/4)

[00:41:50] Marika: With the first canine casualty of the Lahaina fire prepared to see the on-call veterinarian, Katniss was a precursor to the intense search and rescue efforts that were to [00:42:00] come.

[00:42:00] Jenny: There was no plan and, uh, we were put in charge of the, the animal search and rescue. We have no experience in animal search and rescue. No idea. And everything just changed in a, in a matter of a couple of hours, forever.

[00:42:17] Marika: In episode two of Animals of the Maui Wildfires, we'll hear about what the rest of the team, Emily, Johnny, Katie, and Jenny, were doing in those first few days.

We'll also revisit Moani's story as one of the first responders entering the burn zone for search and rescue, including the search for her own family. 

Moani: I had this overwhelming feeling that came over me. Like, somebody saying, You're meant to be here. You're meant to be in this moment, in this time, in this second. You're Like, it's supposed to be you. And I just felt like it was my Kuleana. Like, it was my responsibility.

Marika: I invite you to now take a deep breath and visit the deal with animals.com, where you'll find a link to Maui Humane Society’s webpage, where we're running a fundraiser over the next few months to support the ongoing efforts of Maui Humane Society. Throughout this series, you'll learn about the many ways and programs the MHS [00:43:00] staff have implemented to save as many lives as possible.

However, there is still a great need as these programs cost money every day. Funding is essential for continued rescue. Reunification and adoption. So please take a moment to visit the website and make a donation. Then share it with your friends. Our goal is to raise $10,000 for Maui Humane Society by the first anniversary of the fires on August 8th, 2024.

Thank you for listening. I'll see you in the next episode. As we continue to ask what's the deal with the animals of the Maui wildfires.

I'm your host, Marika Bell. I want to thank the staff at MHS for sharing their stories. I know it wasn't easy. The theme music for the deal with the animals was composed by Kai Stranskoff. Thank you as well to Christina Blanco, the TDWA communications volunteer. And for this series, a very special thank you to John LaSala for his masterful audio engineering. TDWA has literally never sounded better. And for this help, I would also like to dedicate the series to Boo Boo, who lived a beautiful life full of so much love and dirt and gross things to eat. You are missed.

This podcast was produced on historical tribal land of the Snoqualmie, Quinault, and Waccamaw Indian nations.

For more information, go to the Snoqualmie tribes ancestral lands movement. The Deal with Animals is part of the Iroh Animal Podcast Network.

The Team and Their Work