Scouts respond to cry of 'Fire!'

Associated Press

A group of Boy Scouts visiting Kalaupapa, Moloka'i, on a fishing trip is being credited with saving several homes on the remote peninsula from fire.

"It's a lucky thing they were there," said Richard Marks, the sheriff at the tiny former leprosy settlement. "If it wasn't for those Boy Scouts, I don't even want to think what might have happened," added Marks, who said he could have lost his beach house had the Scouts not responded.

The fire broke out Wednesday night, near the end of Troop 35's annual weeklong visit to Kalaupapa to learn fishing.

While cleaning up after dinner, the Scouts heard a woman cry, "Fire!" The boys and their leader grabbed a fire extinguisher and ran outside where they found a pile of lumber ablaze.

"At first we thought it was the house," said Sen Uyeunten, the Scout leader. "We used the fire extinguisher and then some of the boys got the garden hose and sprayed it."

Marks was notified of the fire and sounded the community fire alarm, alerting the National Parks Service's volunteer firefighters.

"It was a good thing they were there," said Chief Ranger Tim Trainer, who arrived on the scene with four other volunteers. "Those flames could have kicked up and we might have lost a couple of houses."

No cause has been determined in the blaze, but Trainer said an electrical line may have sparked and ignited a piece of insulation that fell into the pile of lumber.

Uyeunten said the Honolulu troop has been visiting Kalaupapa for 20 years to learn to fish and work on service projects.

"I hope they get a special medal for this," Marks said.

Kalaupapa, where nearly 8,000 leprosy patients were banished beginning in 1865, has a population of about 100 former patients and state and National Parks Service workers.