LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island.

“People are freaking out,” Don Barnhart recalled.

He spoke on his harrowing experience after making it to safety in Hawaii.

  • A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
    A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
  • A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
    A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
  • A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
    A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
  • A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
    A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
  • A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)
    A Las Vegas comedian who shared his story exclusively with 8 News Now, was one of many forced to evacuate Maui this week, as a devastating wildfire destroys the west side of the island. (Don Barnhart)

“It’s just starting to hit us, that oh my God,” he said. “We were two miles away from where the fire was.”

The comic and his wife traveled to the place they called ‘their second home’ so he could perform his show when the worst happened.

“Everything shut down, power went out,” Barnhart recalled. “Cell service, internet, everything, went out.”

A deadly wildfire swept through the area, shocking everyone and decimating most of western Maui.

As of Wednesday, the blaze had killed six people and hurt more than a dozen others.

“People literally two miles from where we were, where we would have had dinner last night,” Barnhart said. “Ended up jumping into the water, into the harbor, because the fires came in so fast.”

The couple, like so many others, was stranded without power for days. Barnhart said they were unsure of what would happen before they were able to evacuate to Honolulu.

“We looked at each other and went ‘okay,”‘ Barnhart said. “‘If this is our time, we’ve been blessed with a wonderful life, and we’ll die together.”‘

Now, their attention has turned to those who couldn’t leave.

“Our hearts go out to the people there,” Barnhart said. “Because we were blessed to be able to get out.”

He encouraged everyone in Las Vegas, also known as the ‘ninth island,’ to keep Hawaii and its people top of mind.

“That collective energy and that Aloha spirit,” he concluded. “Pray, think good thoughts if you can.”

Barnhart said he had plans to sign papers to open a comedy club in Maui, but the location he chose has since burned to the ground.

As of Wednesday, there was no official cause of the fire determined, experts said a number of factors, including high winds, low humidity, and dry vegetation likely contributed to it spreading.