Terri Thomas’s family has been waiting for days. “It’s tragic — this hopeless feeling,” said Ms. Thomas’s niece, Terra Thomas, who lives in North Carolina. Spotty-to-nonexistent phone reception, especially in the immediate aftermath, made it hard for survivors to contact loved ones. Chief John Pelletier of the Maui Police Department urged people searching for loved ones to take a DNA test that could help identify their remains. Once the couple was able to inform loved ones they were safe, the social media attention proved helpful.

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Persons: Terri Thomas’s, Thomas, Thomas’s, “, ”, Terra Thomas, Jill Tokuda, “ It’s, Noelle Manriquez, John Pelletier of, Pelletier, ” Terra Thomas, Terri Thomas, Harry, Toni Troupe, Toni, Max Whittaker, ” Emily Cochrane Organizations: Democrat, Maui Police Department, ”, The New York Times, huskies, Credit, Facebook Locations: Lahaina, Hawaii, North Carolina, Maui, Congress, West Maui, State, Napili, Honokowai, Ohio, Midwest, Bali