Orange County firefighters have raised $120,000 to help 17 fellow firefighters in Maui who lost their homes in the wildfires there, a fire captain said Wednesday.
The firefighters have handed over most of the money to their Maui counterparts as they continue to help with relief efforts in Hawaii, but on Friday they will deliver $40,000 that just came in from the Montecito Firefighters Charitable Foundation, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi.
The Orange County crew feel a special connection because of OCFA firefighter Ethan Frederick, who grew up in Maui and worked as a firefighter there before getting hired in Orange County, Concialdi said.
“They’ve been through such devastation and loss of life,” Concialdi said. “A number of these 17 firefighters were on duty that day and they knew their homes were burning but they couldn’t even help their own families because they were helping others. A lot of them didn’t even know their families were safe until the next day because they lost all cell phone communication.”
The OCFA has FEMA task force members in Hawaii along with two canines who are trained to look for human remains, Concialdi said.
Concialdi and Frederick were joined by OCFA Chief Brian Fennessy and Local 3631 Union President Chris Hamm on the trip to Hawaii to deliver gift cards and money to the families in need.
Anyone who wants to contribute to the relief fund can make checks payable to the Orange County Fire Authority Benevolent Association, or OCFABA, and reference the Maui Firefighter Trust. Credit card donations can be made at ocfabenevolent.org/donate/. Or donations can be made in person at the association’s office at 1 Fire Authority Road or by calling 714-573-6240.
All of the donations go to the firefighters who lost their homes, Concialdi said.