On what would’ve been his 15th birthday, a Lahaina boy is mourned by a family left broken

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - On what should’ve been Keyiro Fuentes’ 15th birthday, friends and family honored his life at the same park where he learned to walk as a baby.

“He had a very kind heart, a very good heart,” said his brother, Josue Holguin.

The teen was home alone enjoying the last day of summer vacation when flames tore through the town of Lahaina.

Fuentes’ adoptive mom, Luz Vargas, was working five miles away.

As soon as they learned the fire was devastating the area, she says she and her husband, Andres, jumped in their car and raced toward their burning neighborhood.

Special Section: Those we Lost in Lahaina

With traffic at a standstill, she took off running.

“They were saying, ‘Don’t go. Don’t go.’ I said, ‘But it’s my son!’” she said.

At one point, Vargas says she ran into a police barricade

“I threw myself on the floor, lifted my hands up and begged God,” she said.

After running past the officers, she says a man on a motorbike took her to the frontline of the fire, where a team of first responders assured her the area had been cleared.

Two days later, the family finally made it to the devastated home.

“But when we got to his bedroom, he was there. Lying and hugging my dog. But he was not as I expected — in ashes. God maintained him like this so we knew it was him,” she said.

Vargas’ husband Andres and her son Josue wrapped Keyero’s remains in a tarp and carried his body half a mile to a police station.

“When I get home at night, I’m flooded with the memories. I try to be strong,” said Andres Vargas.

Now the family is left grieving — not only what was lost but what could have been.

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