‘A lot of uncertainty’: Braintree family relieved to be home after fires in Maui

BOSTON – It has been a harrowing journey for a local family who was caught in the deadly wildfires in Maui. The Ricci family is grateful they finally landed safely at Logan Airport Friday afternoon.

The gut-wrenching images will always stay with them after seeing a place they’ve loved for years reduced to smoking rubble.

As the Ricci family made it out of the nightmare in Maui and back to Boston, they feel overwhelmed.

“We’re relieved we’re home, what matters is the locals in Maui who lost everything,” said Mary Ricci who evacuated from Maui.

The Braintree family had been on their dream vacation with their two kids.

But on Wednesday, everything took a turn when the windswept wildfires barreled through the heart of Lahaina, leaving a trail of unimaginable destruction.

The Riccis were on another part of the island and couldn’t get back to their resort because of the furious flames.

“We’re mostly thankful that we’re all safe,” said Chris Ricci. “It was a lot of uncertainty where we didn’t know where we should be, where we should go, if we would be heading towards something.”

Finally, they made it to an evacuation center where they stayed in their rented jeep until they could change their flight to come back home.

“Luckily because we were on the other side of the island had service. If we were in our hotel at that time, we wouldn’t have been able to change our flight, powerlines are down, everything is down, our families would have no idea we were OK,” said Mary Ricci.

That’s exactly what other families are dealing with not knowing about their loved ones.

Like Beth Mcleod in Rochester. Her children’s grandmother Linda Vaikeli is among the missing in Maui. Linda has a cane, and the family is worried if she was able to evacuate Lahaina where she lives.

Cell towers are down and calls to Linda are going to voicemail.

“I’m very worried for her just because we don’t know anything,” said Mcleod. “We don’t know what she knew, what happened to her, we don’t know if she has her ID with her. We know nothing. We know that basically where she lives the apartment complex is gone. Everything is gone.”

As they all process the scope of the tragedy with the death toll still climbing, their hearts are in Maui.

“We get to go home that’s the thing, we get to go home, and a lot of people don’t,” said Mary Ricci.  

For more on how to help those affected by the Maui wildfires, click here.

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