Ex-Stratford man and his family left homeless on once-idyllic Pacific island
THE ferocious wildfires which ravaged Maui have left a former Stratford man and his family - who live on the island - homeless and reliant on the generosity of others to survive.
Michael Griffiths, 31, his wife, Abby, and daughters, Isabel, ten, and Eloise, seven, lost everything during the disastrous fires on 8th August which have claimed the lives of 114 people to date and completely wiped-out neighbourhoods, buildings and miles of green space.
What was once Michael and Abby’s idyllic family home in Lahaina, Maui, is now piles of ash and is part of a burnt wasteland littered with the wrecked shells of cars and their children’s blackened bicycles only recognisable by the shape of the wheels.
“It showed no hint of mercy,” Michael told the Herald. “Our house was burnt to the ground. When we drive to our home the car goes silent and we are left speechless The fire raged for 12 hours. It started at 3pm and an hour later we were evacuated. We’ve always had fires, flare-ups and hurricanes but this was the perfect storm with 80 to 90 mph winds. Very dry grassland caught fire and the wind helped the flames rip through the town against a curtain of thick grey smoke. There were power lines down all over the place.”
The family remained calm and “chucked” clothes into a suitcase still believing their house would not burn down. However, their hopes were dashed, and they have had to rely on the kindness of friends of friends they’d never met before to put them up for the first few nights.
Having lived on the island for the last two and a half years, Michael and Abby have run a scuba diving club popular with holiday makers. The business is on hold for the time being because most of the kit was destroyed in the fire. In addition, Isabel and Eloise have missed their new term as schools were either badly damaged of totally burnt down.
The human tragedy remains unclear as the number of deaths may increase and the clean-up and rebuild could run into billions of dollars.
“Maui is just what you expect it to be and for anyone wanting a vacation you’ve got beaches, wildlife, historic buildings and surfing. If you can picture this in your mind you’d be pretty spot on,” Michael said.
While the community has come together there’s underlying anger and frustration about the lack of support from the island’s government as Michael explains.
“We feel forgotten,” he said. “The government has messed up. Maui has a tsunami warning system but we heard not a peep from it and there were no radio broadcasts to update us.
Boats were coming over with supplies from the nearby island of Molokai and other islands – we felt humbled. The community has saved us not the government. We didn’t have water in the fire hydrants but tourist resorts were watering golf courses while the houses were burning. As for our house there’s no pieces to pick up and there’s nothing there - just ash. As regards the business we will just have to re-build it. All the scuba equipment has gone so there’s no chance of work now and it’s going to be a tricky balancing act but we’ll try and keep everything as stable as possible for the kids.”
Michael has close connections with Stratford having moved here with his family when he was ten. He was educated at St Benedict’s and then Alcester Grammar School and he also played football for Stratford Town’s junior section.
He said: “Summers were spent on the Rec and at the skate park. I left when I was 18 but still come back and visit regularly. Stratford maybe a small dot on the map but everyone’s heard of it because of Shakespeare and Americans really like Stratford and are quick to tell me “I’ve been there” so it does come up in conversation from time to time.”
His mother Fiona and his father Robert Griffiths, who live in Stratford, spoke with the Herald this week and expressed their overwhelming gratitude all the family was safe but because there was no access to the internet in Maui, Michael’s parents had to keep him updated with latest developments as they watched the news unfold from their home.
Fiona said: “Michael told us the power had gone down but he didn’t appear alarmed or unduly worried. He added that work and school was cancelled. By the next morning we had a message telling us the family were safe but the situation was “scary”. Thankfully they were able to evacuate in time.”
The Griffiths have been in Stratford for 20 years. Michael’s sister Nat and her husband, Matt, live in the town with their children and Bethany – his other sister -lives in Wixford with her partner.
Reflecting on Michael and Abby’s family situation since the fire, his father, Robert, said: “They are all a lovely tight and caring family. They will be strong and supporting each other through this. They are involved in the community and have many friends through Michael’s Jui-jitsu, surfing and the girls wrestling and football. It was a very outdoor life on a relatively small island. They loved the history of Lahaina. When food, clothes and baby nappies arrived from other islands, Michael walked into the sea with fellow islanders to carry the supplies off jet skis and boats and take them safely back to shore to be handed out.”
Fiona added: “For the time being, Michael and Abby and the girls are in a flat which they share with other people. That is their lives now but they are safe and we all have so much gratitude for that.”
The family have launched a fund-raising appeal. To make a donation visit: