Adam Probolsky and his family faced a daunting task as flames inched closer to their scenic Maui resort. Determined to evacuate, they packed their rental car with luggage secured by bungee cords. This was on August 9th, a Wednesday morning, when the situation had become dire.
The previous day, strong winds had knocked out power at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa. As night fell, a massive wildfire began spreading.
“We could hear explosions in the distance, and each one was a heartbreaking reminder,” said Probolsky, 49, an Irvine-based public policy researcher, during a phone interview from Honolulu on Thursday. “Those explosions were caused by propane tanks. It was evident that someone had lost a significant part of their life.”
The Probolsky family, consisting of Adam, his wife Desiree, their children Isabela (9) and Olivia (10), and his mother-in-law Lupe, had arrived at the resort near Lahaina on Sunday.
As the fire drew nearer on Tuesday, the hotel supplies rapidly dwindled. Food, toilet paper, and batteries were in short supply. When the internet service also went down, Probolsky reached out to his brother and best friend for assistance in devising an escape plan. They decided to wait until Wednesday, when safer exit routes would be available.
By a stroke of luck, Probolsky had brought a satellite phone and backup power, prepared for emergencies such as this.
“My family will never ridicule me again for carrying a satellite phone,” Probolsky wrote in a LinkedIn post. “I always engage in contingency planning, but this situation was extraordinary.”
On Wednesday morning, the situation at the hotel reached a critical point. Visitors waited in long lines for food, which eventually ran out, and the hotel store was emptied.
“People became increasingly agitated,” Probolsky wrote. “Staying was no longer a viable option.”
When an announcement was made around 9 a.m. that the only road heading north was open, and with the hotel nearly depleted of supplies, Probolsky knew it was time to leave. By that time, most of Lahaina had turned to ash.
“I spoke to several employees who shared heartbreaking stories,” Probolsky said. “One man lost his family home that had been passed down for three generations. He was at the hotel working security. I didn’t know what to say. Here was a man facing a crisis, yet still fulfilling his duties.
“There was a woman whose power line fell on her car and set it on fire. She had to flee to the beach for safety. And a few hours later, she returned to work… These individuals didn’t have to be there, but they felt a sense of responsibility.”
Prior to the fire, Probolsky had put up an ad on Craigslist seeking local assistance for errands and guidance on navigating the island. On Tuesday, Freya Kudzmas, a resident from Haiku on the other side of the island, helped him gather essential supplies for their escape. They packed the car so tightly with goods and luggage that bungee cords were used to secure everything together.
By late Wednesday morning, with power running out at the hotel and the fire ominously glowing outside the windows, Probolsky’s brother had arranged a flight to Oahu and a hotel room for the family.
They had to move quickly.
“I rushed downstairs, and I know it sounds dramatic, but I grabbed Lupe’s arm and said, ‘We need to leave now,’” Probolsky recounted. “We raced back to the room… I said we had a 20-minute window.”
“It was like a scene from a Liam Neeson movie,” Probolsky wrote on LinkedIn. “I knew we had a brief opportunity to escape before chaos fell upon us.”
Finally, Probolsky and his family set off on the Honoapiilan Highway, heading northbound along Maui’s west coast, passing breathtaking cliffs and lush landscapes.
“Our escape route was through the frightening (even on a calm day) north road to the airport,” Probolsky noted. “In many places, it was a one-lane road posing as a two-lane highway, with steep drops on one side and rock walls on the other.”
Later that evening, the family managed to catch a flight off the island.
“Life here is back to normal,” Probolsky shared from a mall in Honolulu on Friday. “I might as well be at The Grove. Going from climbing eight flights of stairs to being in a luxury mall with a Giorgio Armani store is quite astonishing.”
Probolsky was quick to acknowledge the assistance of Kudzmas and other local residents who played a crucial role in ensuring the family’s safe escape. Kudzmas, originally from Philadelphia and a Maui resident for nine years, is also out of harm’s way.
“Hawaiians are some of the kindest people you’ll ever meet,” she stated. “It doesn’t surprise me at all that the hotel staff were selfless. From what we’ve heard on-site, the situation seems far worse than what the news reports. Many people didn’t have enough time to evacuate.”
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