Brush fires heat up Hawaii

More than a half-dozen brush fires are sweeping across the islands, and weather officials expect more to come in the months ahead as Hawaii enters the peak of fire season.

Firefighters were battling wildfires that have scorched thousands of acres on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island over the past week with no end in sight as the hot and dry conditions and tradewinds abound.

Two wildfires substantially grew in the Makaha and Waianae valleys, consuming 8,800 acres in Leeward Oahu, up from about 5,000 acres Sunday. The Honolulu Fire Department said at 8 p.m. that 80 percent of the Waianae Valley fire was contained and 50 percent for Makaha Valley.

“Multiple homes were threatened by flare-ups throughout the day,” said fire Capt. Scot Seguirant. “The most intense areas that were hard fought were the area behind Leihoku Elementary in Waianae and the Maunaolu subdivision in Makaha Valley.”

Leihoku Elementary School and Makaha Elementary School were closed Monday.

Leeward Oahu has seen below normal rainfall levels this summer with just .02 inches on average in June, compared with the normal of about half an inch — the most recent data available, Derek Wroe, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Sunday.

“It’s usually a dry time of the year to begin with, but it’s definitely below normal,” he said.

Leeward Oahu is experiencing a “moderate drought,” following a mostly drought-free first half of the year, he said.

Fueling the fire is the buildup of grasses and brush following a “good amount of rainfall last year,” and breezy conditions that are expected to continue.

“We tend to get a lot of growth in the brush … especially across the Leeward portions of the state. There’s a lot more fuel available,” Wroe said. “When it dries out and gets to the hottest point of year … all the brush dries out and becomes fuel for fire activity.”

In Makaha no injuries or damaged structures were reported. A fire destroyed five farm-type structures in Waianae, and one minor injury was reported. On Friday night a separate wild-land blaze burned five acres on the hillside near Maili Point. On Saturday the brush fires forced road closures and the evacuation of some Makaha and Waianae residents.

Meanwhile, Hawaii island firefighters were dealing with two massive brush fires, one in the Waikoloa area on Highway 190 that consumed 18,000 acres — the largest in recent years — and another that burned more than 700 acres on the slopes of Mauna Loa. The latter started on Keauhou Ranch and moved into Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, where it claimed native koa forests, an important habitat for endangered and endemic species like the Hawaiian hawk and bat. It wasn’t contained as of press deadline and was moving west toward Kapapala Ranch.

Another blaze ignited outside the park during repairs to a bulldozer, while two separate smaller fires flared up in Kau: a 120-acre south fire and 35-acre north fire half a mile away.

Mauna Loa Road and most of the national park have been closed to the public since May 11 due to hazardous conditions from the volcanic eruption.

“The next significant rainfall is not expected until Wednesday, when Hurricane Hector is expected to impact the Hawaiian Islands,” said park spokeswoman Jessica Ferracane.

Maui firefighters contained a 10-acre fire in the Pulehu area in lower Kula on Monday afternoon. A separate Maui Lani fire was extinguished Friday.

“A lot of these smaller fires really have the potential to be big. With the strong trades during the summer and the hotter and dry weather, there definitely can be more of a potential to have these types of wild fires,” said Rylan Yatsushiro, fire services chief at the Maui Fire Department. “We plan every summer for it. Everybody has an expectation, (so) … we provide additional wild land firefighting training prior to each brush fire season. We’ll keep trying to stay alert and be prepared.”