Coast Guard Members, Civilians Honored for Heroism Lahaina

Coast Guard and civilian sailors who responded to the deadly 2023 Lahaina fire are being recognized for heroism at sea by national and international organizations.

The International Maritime Organization, the United Nations agency that regulates and oversees shipping, last month awarded five Coast Guard rescuers and four Good Samaritans with commendations for their bravery. One of them, Petty Officer 2nd Class Joshua Marzilli, was also selected as the USO’s Servicemember of the Year.

The awards were presented at a ceremony Oct. 18 at the J. Walter Cameron Center in Wailuku. During the ceremony, the Coast Guard also recognized with letters of appreciation the 26 local boat captains and crew members who responded aboard the vessels Trilogy II, Marjorie Ann, Reef Explorer and Ali’i Nui, as well as the Expeditions boat. Coast Guard Lt. Dylan McCall was commended for his service during the incident.

Earlier this year, Marzilli received the Coast Guard Medal, the service’s highest award for peacetime valor, for his actions on Aug. 8, 2023.

“For a while it was like a few people just got recognition,” Marzilli told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “But I’m glad they’re finally getting the recognition they deserve for their actions, not just mine.”

Other recipients of recognition included Chrissy Lovitt and her wife Emma Nelson, who along with fellow Maui resident Lashawna Garnier, took control of the Expeditions boat to join other civilian crews assisting Coast Guard Station Maui personnel in rescuing Lahaina residents who had taken to the water to escape. the flames that engulfed the city.

“It’s a small town, and we probably knew people there — and we knew people there,” Lovitt said. “So it was nice just to know that we stepped forward to help people in our community.”

Strong winds on August 8, 2023 not only spread the flames faster than usual, but also made it too dangerous for helicopters to fly.

As the flames engulfed Lahaina, the Coast Guard received calls for help. But when Coast Guard Sector Honolulu Commander Capt. Aja Kirksey rallied her team, she soon realized she was unable to send in air support, and most of her boats were more than eight hours away from the unfolding disaster. Instead, the Coast Guard would have to rely on small crews based on Maui and the few small boats they had.

The service called with a request to call sailors who could help. Those who answered the call joined Coast Guard personnel as they navigated strong winds, thick smoke and floating debris in Lahaina Harbor, coordinating by radio, searching for survivors and pulling them from the water, and rescuing people stranded on shore .

Marzilli and Travis DeWater, a lifeguard aboard the Trilogy II, entered the water themselves with surfboards as they paddled into the harbor. In announcing the award, the International Maritime Organization described how the pair, using the Expeditions boat, “directly contributed to the safety and survival of more than 40 people trapped in the fire.”

In total, the independent rescue flotilla saved 17 people in the harbor and pulled 40 survivors ashore.

In her letter to Lovitt, Kirksey wrote: “I cannot express the immense admiration and gratitude my team and I felt when you responded to the call to help us save lives in dire circumstances. You fearlessly walked through thick smoke and heavy flames to aid our response efforts… . The decision to put ourselves at risk was not just a contribution to our mission, it was a lifeline for those who had lost everything.”

Lovitt and Nelson, who were preparing to start whale-watching tours, were forced to commandeer the Expeditions vessel as their boats were destroyed.

“We basically just started our business and lost everything,” Lovitt said.

But with the help of friends, family and donations from those who heard their story, they gradually managed to buy new boats and rebuild their business.

“We were able to use what equipment we were able to get and we got a job in Lahaina cleaning up the shoreline,” she explained. “It was a really big job. And, you know, it’s kind of full circle that we had nothing, we lost everything, and then we were able to buy more equipment, which in turn was used to clean up Lahaina.”

When the lifeguards gathered again last month in Wailuka to receive their awards and recognition, Marzilli said it was a strange experience. They knew each other mostly as voices on the radio or as they shouted between boats through the smoke and darkness. They knew the names and the boats, but few of them knew the faces of the others who were there that day.

“We got closer somehow. There was an instant connection between people, but when we were done with the events, none of us recognized each other,” Marzilli said. … it was such a surreal moment. If we were walking down the street, we wouldn’t recognize each other, although together with these people we contributed to such an amazing event in history.”

Marzilli is no longer assigned to Coast Guard Station Maui. He is now assigned to Harriet Lane, the Coast Guard’s new Indo-Pacific Support Unit, based in Honolulu and assigned to operations in Oceania. This summer, he and Lane embarked on an expanded patrol of the region, working with island nation authorities to combat illegal fishing.

He said he enjoys learning about island cultures, but added that “Maui holds a special place in my heart. I’ve really come to love this island and it’s a place I consider home.”

Meanwhile, Lovitt and Nelson are gearing up for whale-watching season with their company, Maui Ocean Adventures, which is run exclusively by fire survivors.

Lovitt said getting back on the water was “healing.”

“At first I didn’t want to,” she said, “and then someone made me get back on the boat.”

For now, Lovitt said, “we’re just excited to get back to work and do what we love.”