Seattle woman recounts Hawaii family's escape from wildfire

At least 36 have died in the wildfires sweeping across Hawaii's Big Island and Maui. Dozens more have been injured, and thousands are taking shelter after evacuating their homes — many of which have been burned to the ground.

Roxanne See has watched it all, from a distance, at her home in Seattle. She moved to Washington from Oahu in 2013. Many of her family members are in the path of the flames. See was able to speak to them Wednesday night, and says they're all accounted for, however, several of their homes in Lahaina, Maui, are a total loss.

"According to one niece, they were told to evacuate, and as they were getting things out of their apartment or house, their roof caught fire," See told KUOW's Angela King. "So, they ran with whatever they could. They got to the car, but of course there is traffic because everybody is trying to evacuate, too. It got to the point where traffic wasn't moving, so one of my nieces said that they just got out of the car and jumped into the water."

At the time, the water was the family's only refuge from the flames.

See's cousin lost her home, as did two of her children. Still, she's staying positive.