Among the devastation left behind by the Maui wildfires, a single Lahaina home stands untouched.
Miracle house.
— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) August 22, 2023
A house remained unscathed in #Lahaina , while virtually the entire town was completely ravaged by wildfires. #Hawaii pic.twitter.com/2DgmVM3hnL
Images display the house with the red roof on Front Street still standing in good condition, surrounded by remnants of what used to be a neighborhood, via the Honolulu Civil Beat. The image was also posted in X, formerly Twitter.
The home’s owner Trip Millikin said, “It looks like it was photoshopped in.”
Millikin was on a trip to Massachusetts with his wife when the fires broke out. He last heard from his nearest neighbor on Aug. 8 as the fires swept their community.
He noted that the wildfires sickened him as news of them spreading, but that a friend called him the next morning, and sent a picture of a helicopter flying over their house, which was unscathed.
“We started crying,” he said. “I felt guilty. We still feel guilty.”
Millikin described seeing wildfires ignite the homes of friends living in California in the past and witnessing the houses that somehow survive.
He recounted thinking, “Boy, I’m glad I don’t own that one. I wouldn’t want that. I would feel guilty.”
“That’s our house” now, Millikin noted.
He and his wife bought the 100-year-old home in 2021 to rehab it. He recalled the state of the structure, noting, “The house was an absolute nightmare, but you could see the bones of it.”
The couple worked with the county to follow a historic preservation plan for the past two years. Most of the work was done through their own efforts and with the help of neighbors and local carpenters.
During this period, Millikin dug out the existing landscape and surrounded the house with river stones.
It was this choice that Michael Wara, director of the Climate and Energy Policy Program at the Stanford Wood Institute for the Environment, believes saved the house.
He explained that removing combustible plants and materials around the building likely saved it. But that has not saved the Millikins from the guilt of being the only ones left in their neighborhood with a house.
Millikin’s guilt is now fueling a desire to work within the community and help others. Although he and his wife have been advised to remain out of the area for the time being, when they do return home, he plans to use his house as a resource for neighbors to use.
“Let’s rebuild this together,” he expressed his new focus. “This house will become a base for all of us. Let’s use it.”
