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BBC Pidgin of Tuesday, 22 August 2023

Source: BBC

How 100-year-old house survive fire wey burn odas down for Hawaii

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Pictures of one single red-roofed house for Maui, Hawaii, don go viral sake of say wen fire burn houses wey surround am, na only dis house no dey affected.

Di 100-year-old wood house wey dey Front Street still dey stand as most of di town of Lahaina chop destruction.

Di owners of di houses still dey wonder wetin cause di fire to spread.

From pictures, “e look like sometin wey dem photoshop inside,” Trip Millikin wey be di owner of di house tell Honolulu Civil Beat.

Di search and recovery efforts still dey go on for Maui and so far na 114 pipo dem don confirm say dem die.

Officials say some 850 pipo dey miss, but dem don find ova 1,200 pipo wey bin dey di list and dem dey safe.

Di fire destroy most of di historic Maui town of Lahaina and di fire dey considered di worst natural disaster for Hawaii state history.

President Joe Biden arrive for Hawaii on Monday to see di devastation.

Di red-roofed home owners bin dey on trip to Massachusetts wen dem hear di news of di fire.

Oga Millikin and wife learn say di whole neighbourhood don dey caught up in di fire and go dey likely to burn down. But di next morning, aerial footage show dia house dey intact.

“We bin start to dey cry,” e tell Honolulu Civil Beat. “I feel guilty. We still feel guilty.”

Oga Millikin and im wife tok say dem no dey sure exactly wetin save dia home. Two years ago, di couple buy di 100-year-old property wey be bookkeeper’s house for employees of sugar plantation.

Oga Millikin and im wife tok say di house bin dey in disrepair, so dem restore am. Maybe na dis renovations save di home, di couple tell di US media.

Dem change di asphalt roof of di house wit heavy-gauge metal and dem also surround di house wit river stones and remove foliage around am. But none of dis actions no be to stop fire, di couple tok.

“Na 100% wood house, so no be say we fireproof am or anytin,” Dora Atwater Millikin tell di Los Angeles Time.

She tok say as di fires blaze, large pieces of wood go hit pipo roofs. “If na asphalt roof, e go catch fire. And otherwise, dem go fall off di roof and den ignite di foliage around di house,” she tok.

She add say di house distance from dia neighbours fit don also serve as wetin help am.

Di couple tok say di hope to return to Lahaina wen e dey safe, and wen dem return, dem plan to offer dia house for many wey don lose dia own.

“Many pipo don die,” Ms Atwater Millikin tok. “So many pipo don lose everytin, and we need to look out for each oda and rebuild. Evribodi need to help rebuild.