Off-duty first responders, civilian rescue Kihei woman from house fire

Three people rescued a 84-year-old Kihei woman after a fire broke out in the garage of her home.

At about 2:16 p.m. Sunday, firefighters responded to a fire at a two-story home on Luakaha Circle. Firefighters arrived and found the garage fully engulfed in flames, said the Maui Fire Department in a news release.

A nearby off-duty Maui firefighter, off-duty Maui police officer and civilian rushed to the home after they saw smoke and flames emerging from the garage. They entered the home to search for any residents and found the woman sleeping in her bedroom, the fire department said.

They safely brought her out of the house through the back door. There were no reports of any injuries.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control at 2:39 p.m. and extinguished at 4:09 p.m.

Fire investigators determined the blaze was accidental from a burned rag that wasn’t fully extinguished when discarded in a trash container in the garage. The fire department said the rag caught fire while the woman was cooking earlier that day. She told investigators she thought the fire was extinguished when she placed the rag in the waste bin.

Damage was estimated at $250,000 to the structure and its contents. The garage and the vehicle were destroyed by the blaze and the rest of home was affected by smoke damage.

The fire department said the resident will be staying with a family member until repairs are made to the home. The American Red Cross is also assisting.