Teacher saves former student from Maui wildfires

Joa Navarro might never have made it out of the Maui wildfire if not for a chance encounter with his favourite teacher, Jackie Ellis.

The Lahainaluna High School student, 18, was working Tuesday at a local sailboat charter company – a job Ms Ellis had helped him get.

But the high winds from Hurricane Dora passing south of the island had suspended boat prep work for the day.

All the petrol pumps in the area had closed because of the inclement weather and his car was too low on petrol to drive back home to Kahana.

So Mr Navarro instead drove inside the parking structure of an outlet shopping mall and took a nap.

“It was just a pretty chill day,” he told the BBC. “There was no power, but we’d had that before.

“The only thing out of the ordinary was the wind. That’s why I went to the parking garage.”

By the time he awoke, a giant blaze was spreading through Lahaina and he saw “a fat cloud of smoke coming right at me”.

Concerned his vehicle would stall as he tried to get away, he began driving.

As he tried to figure out what to do and where to go, he instantly recognised Ms Ellis’ bright-coloured SUV fly past him in the opposite direction.

She had both hands on the wheel and looked like she had a plan. Without thinking twice, he followed her.

Ms Ellis had taught Mr Navarro biology, marine science and other disciplines in each of the past four years. He even went on to become her teaching assistant in his final year.

She was also his senior class adviser – a position he claims “she stepped up to do because nobody else wanted to” – and helped coach the school soccer team.

“She’s just such a good teacher,” he said. “You can tell how much she cares about the students, and how much she really wants them to succeed, not just get a good grade.”

Last week, they had met at his graduation party before he headed off to the University of Utah.

But, in the crawling traffic, Ms Ellis was “in a zone”, her mind was spiralling and she did not notice him.

As she tried to make a right turn at an intersection enveloped in embers, he pulled up beside her.

With smoke rushing in through their windows, he managed to communicate that his car was running out of fuel and he needed help.

They drove up to, and stopped at, a nearby school. Mr Navarro abandoned his car and jumped into Ms Ellis’ one, alongside her two Australian shepherd dogs.

“It calmed me down having him there,” said Ms Ellis.

“I love my two dogs, but they’re naturally high strung. They were anxious and panting and whining, and that was heightening my anxiety.”

Together, they drove out of Lahaina to safety. Ms Ellis dropped Mr Navarro off at a friend’s house in Launiupoko and then went to her own friend’s place in the same town.

Much of Lahaina was devastated by the fires. Ms Ellis’ home, which sits on a mountain above the school, is currently uninhabitable and she has no idea when she will be able to return home, or to her teaching job.

As she looks for temporary shelter, Mr Navarro’s parents have offered up their son’s bedroom while he is away at college.

Ms Ellis also holds the keys to Mr Navarro’s car, which – apart from a melted licence plate – has miraculously survived the flames.

Both are eternally grateful they crossed paths that day, even if Ms Ellis is not thrilled her prized science student is now majoring in finance at university.

“I always appreciated having Joa around,” she said. “He’s really smart, really focused and dedicated, and he’s just a great kid.”

Reflecting on his time in her class, Mr Navarro recalls how she was so much fun to be around that he would spend – not just class time – but also recess and lunch in her class sometimes.

“Honestly, I kind of felt bad when this happened,” he said.

“I was always bugging her, and now she finally gets some time away from me – and then she has to save my life. She’s always stuck with me.”

“Can’t get away from him,” Ms Ellis chimes in with a laugh.