Ronald "Square" Goya, one of three children, was born to Okinawan inunigrants, Ushi "Haru" and Aizo Goya, on September 19, 1911. His father, originally from Okinawa, worked first as a plantation worker on the Big Island. After moving to Hilo his father drove a hackney then a taxicab; he later operated a grocery, liquor store, U-Drive, and service station. Born in the Waiakea section but raised in the Shinmachi section of Hilo, he attended Waiakea Kai, Kapi'olani, Hilo Intermediate, and Hilo High schools. He graduated from Hilo High School in 1934.

A woman recalls her parents and growing up in Hana, Maui. She tells of moving to Molokai and meeting her husband. On the beach with family members when the 1957 tidal wave arrived, she describes the receding ocean, their getaway in a truck, and a near accident.

A man raised in Kahului's Kanaha Camp touches on his parents, schooling, and work. He retains a trace memory of tsunami flooding in Kahului.

Sabas T. Jamito, Tagalog, was born in Camarines Norte, Philippines on January 12, 1912. At the age of five months, he and his family immigrated to the Big Island of Hawaii. Until 1922, when the family moved to Hilo, Sabas lived on various sugar plantations: Papaaloa, Paauilo, Ookala, and Olaa. While in Hilo, Sabas helped his father in the sugarcane fields and earned money as a shoe shine boy. He attended Kapiolani School, Hila Union School, Hilo Intermediate, and Hila High. In 1929, Sabas began his boxing career in Hilo, making five dollars a fight.

Sadako Ishizaki Suzuki was born August 29, 1929 in North Kohala, Hawai'i. Her father, Sahichi Ishizaki, was an immigrant to Hawai'i from Japan and was employed by Kohala Sugar Company. Her mother, Itoyo Takatani Ishizaki, was born and raised in North Kohala. When Suzuki was eight years old, she, her older sister, and two younger brothers were orphaned. The children were taken in by a Daikawa family in Hilo and eventually came to live in the Waiak:ea district of the town.

A man who grew up in MolokaI talks about his family background, fishing, his schooling, family life, and moving to Honolulu. He describes his experience of the 1946 tidal wave that hit the east end of Molokai.

A Molokai man outlines his family background. He describes the 1946 tidal wave which displaced two east side homes.

Haiku-born man remembers growing up in a plantation camp. A Lahaina Technical School boarder, he worked for HC&S sugar plantation after graduation. He and a coworker were working on Spreckelsville beach when the 1946 tsunami hit Maui. In their escape, he particularly recalls the roar of the incoming water.

A Molokai resident talks about fish ponds and fishing on the east side. A teenager in 1957, he watched the incoming tidal wave flow beneath him from his perch on a mangrove tree.

A former Marine Corps officer describes the Spreckelsville beach neighborhood where he lived in 1946. He explains his duties inspecting the Naval Air Stations at Puunene and Kahului. He shares anecdotes and observations on the 1946 tsunami, including the ensuing damages.