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Remembering the
eight who died

One year later: Still hurting
Rescuers still troubled
Will the park ever open again?

By Jaymes K. Song
Star-Bulletin

Aaron Bann Placentia, Calif. He died shielding his wife, Cindy, from the falling rocks. His family recently placed a plaque honoring him at his grave in California. Bann, 31, a property manager, graduated from the University of Southern California and had just received his MBA from Claremont Graduate School. He has a daughter, Alexis, now 2.	Sara Johnson Hayward, Calif. She worked on Boeing 747 jets as a United Airlines airframe mechanic. Johnson, 24, was engaged to Michael Heckman, who was with her in her last moments. Heckman suffered a broken foot and injured arm. She was best friends with Jennifer Johnson, who also died that day. Her parents, Jack and Christine Johnson, said their daughter was always happy and had a beautiful smile.	Danielle Nicole Williams Hickam Air Force Base At 7, a second-grader at Mo-kulele Elementary School, she was the youngest of the eight victims. Her adoptive mother and 9-year-old brother, Dorian, also were injured. Family members said she "loved to learn everything." Hundreds attended her memorial service at Hickam. Her program read: "You see, God needed an angel and I volunteered."

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Scott T. Huling Stationed at Hickam A master sergeant, he served 16 years in the Air Force. He was named the Air Force's top first sergeant in Hawaii in 1997 and also served as president of the Air Force Hawaii First Sergeants Association. Huling, 36, a native of Tennessee, was working on a degree at Hawaii Pacific University. His wife, 28, and son were hospitalized after the rock fall; two other sons received minor injuries. His family has since moved back to the mainland.	Terri Zerebeski Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada She was visiting Hawaii with her husband, Geza Szenes, and 7-year-old son, Colin, who was seriously injured by falling rocks. Szenes described her as an outgoing person who loved cappuccino, shopping, dogs and teddy bears. Zerebeski, 42, a psychiatric nurse, and Szenes planned to try for a second child after returning from the Hawaii vacation. Friends said her son was "everything" to her.	Jennifer Johnson West Hills, Calif. She flew to Honolulu with her parents to attend her brother Mark's graduation from Chaminade University. Johnson, 24, attended Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., and majored in environmental safety. Her fiance, Robert Cole Graham, said, "I love her more than my next breath."

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Mark Johnson West Hills, Calif. He served eight years in the Navy and was stationed at Barbers Point. Johnson, 29, was to graduate from Chaminade University the day after the rockslide. He was posthumously given a bachelor's degree with honors in history and political science.

Donna Kim Forsch Elk Grove, Calif. She and her husband, Michael, who was seriously injured in the rock fall, were celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary in Hawaii. They were college sweethearts at Sacramento State University. The couple hoped to have a child after returning home, and Forsch, 38, a saleswoman, had scheduled an appointment for in vitro fertilization a month later. Her last words to a rescuer were, "Tell my husband, Mike, I love him very much."

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Rescuers are
still troubled by the
‘war movie’ memories

By Jaymes K. Song
Star-Bulletin

The rescuers are still troubled by the 'war movie' memories

The screams, moans and cries. The blood. The injured children. The death.

Even for those trained to save lives, it hasn't been easy to forget Sacred Falls.

"As we were driving up the road, it was reminiscent of a war movie," said Fire Battalion Chief Ken Silva, the incident commander that day. Victims "were just coming down with mud on them, with various injuries -- from minor cuts to possibly broken limbs.

"They looked like they were in a daze. In shock."

About 100 people -- including police officers, state land officers, military personnel, paramedics and 45 firefighters -- were called out that Sunday afternoon.

"Some firefighters still don't want to talk," said Kaaawa firefighter Mark Yeager, who was among the first to reach the falls. "They're still bothered by sights and visions. But at the time, everybody stepped up to plate and performed."

Other hikers also helped immensely in aiding and comforting the injured and dying, Yeager said. "Each victim had one or two people with them. None were by themselves."

While each rescuer has dealt with the tragedy differently, Yeager and Silva both say they have been able to move on. But they, too, cannot forget.

For those who saw first-hand how fragile life really is, life simply changed after May 9.

Four days after the disaster, firefighters involved in the rescue attended a "critical-incident stress debriefing," where they discussed the event and their emotions.

"Some of us were OK after the incident," Yeager said. "Some firefighters couldn't sleep for three-four days until we talked about it ... Some put it out of memory and don't want to bring it up again."

For Silva, "faith was the most important thing."

"To tell the truth, being a Christian and my strong faith put it in proper perspective."

Both Silva and Yeager said it was crucial, during the rescue, not to get swept up in emotion, to focus instead on the task of getting the injured out before darkness.

Yeager recalls the first critically injured person to be strapped to a board to be lifted by a helicopter. "She was dying," he said. "The look was in her eyes."

By the time she arrived at the base of the park, she was dead.

Yeager, who was at many times inside the "impact zone," where most of the rocks fell, also said he didn't think about rocks possibly falling on him.

"I didn't think about that until all the living victims were out," he said.

Today, the firefighters involved in the rescue share an "unspoken bond."

"I realized what we do is so much more than a job," Silva said. "We're helping people."