A lengthy queue of over 100 cars extended towards Maui's War Memorial Stadium on Thursday, even as the shelter reached its capacity. Numerous evacuees have arrived, establishing makeshift homes after wildfires ravaged the Hawaiian island, decimating entire neighborhoods and leaving many residents without shelter.

Volunteers are working to create a comfortable environment despite the heat, offering local treats like shaved ice. Nevertheless, conditions remain difficult. As bedding must be brought by individuals to the shelter, many are sleeping on simple cots and air mattresses. In response to identified needs, part-time Maui resident and talk show host Oprah Winfrey contributed pillows and other supplies.

Tom Leonard, a Lahaina resident of 44 years, shared that he has been at the shelter for the past two days following the loss of all his belongings. Uncertainty clouds his future plans as he contemplates where to go next.

Beyond the material loss, the absence of loved ones weighs heavily on the minds of evacuees. Some even harbor feelings of guilt. Amidst the tragedy, hundreds are reportedly missing, and the death toll of at least 55 is anticipated to climb higher.

Establishing contact with loved ones is further complicated by unreliable mobile service on the island. To mitigate this, shelter inhabitants are jotting down the names and contact information of their loved ones, pinning notes on increasingly crowded whiteboards.

Maui resident Ellie Erickson took the initiative to create a Google spreadsheet, collaborating with others to locate missing individuals. Although shared just on Wednesday morning, the spreadsheet has garnered thousands of names. Some names are highlighted in green to denote they have been "found," while others are marked in red as "not located."

Amidst uncertainty about the identities of the deceased, people rely on rumors to ascertain the well-being of their neighbors and friends.

Chelsey Vierra's great-grandmother, Louise Abihai, lives at the Hale Mahaolu senior living facility. She told the Associated Press that she did not know if she was OK.

"She doesn't have a phone. She's 97 years old," Ms Vierra said. "She can walk. She is strong."

"If you never made contact with your family before sunset last night, you're still trying to figure out where they are," Leomana Turalde, 36, told USA Today. He has several aunties who live near Lahaina's popular Front Street which bore some of the heaviest.

One of them went missing on Wednesday morning.

At the shelter, Les Munn, 42, recalled packing his belongings as the hurricane winds began coming to shore. His building then caught fire around him. "Everything went black", he said, as the smoke began pouring in.

"I ran up, knocking on some of my neighbours doors. And some of them wouldn't come out," he said, sounding perplexed by their decision.

Eventually he ran outside, spotted a blue light from a police car through the dense black smoke, and ran and dove into the back of the vehicle. "And that's how I survived," he said from his shelter cot.

He added that he had not seen any of his neighbours in the shelter and was concerned for their safety.

"I don't know their fate," he said. "I don't know if they survived."

Bad