'I feared for the worst': SoCal man grateful after daughter's harrowing escape from Hawaii wildfires

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (KABC) -- Ramon Airington of Thousand Oaks is still trying to process his daughter barely escaping the raging fires in Hawaii that have left a swath of devastation.

His daughter lost nearly everything, but escaped with her life.

"I feared for the worst," Airington said.

Terrifying cellphone video shows the moments his daughter, Sophia, escaped from her home in the historic town of Lahaina.

Images and stories coming out of Lahaina paint an increasingly grim scene as Hawaii's emergency responders work to rescue victims and control wildfires that have ravaged parts of Maui this week.

Airington first heard of the fires Wednesday morning.

"I immediately went to the phone to try and call her, and I couldn't get through," Airington said.

He spent the day trying to get ahold of Sophia, but was only able to reach her friend.

Airington said he found out that his daughter had gotten into an accident trying to get out.

For Sophia, the day was spent trying to evacuate her beloved home.

"She saw the building on fire and all she could think about was rushing in to get her dog," Airington said.

She made it out with her dog and passport but was chased by the flames. It was Wednesday evening when she finally made it to safety and called her family.

"Everything she owned, everything she had it's completely gone," Airington said. "She has no clothes, she has no home, her place of work burned down."

Now she's starting over. Her family started a GoFundMe account to raise money for food, shelter and clothing. She plans to fly home to Thousand Oaks this weekend.

"There's some families out there who lost their loved ones," Airington said. "For her to make it, I'm just really grateful to God."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.