Makakilo family escapes home fire
By Will Hoover
Advertiser Staff Writer
Honolulu Fire Department and American Red Cross personnel responded to a two-alarm fire yesterday morning that destroyed a 4-bedroom house in Makakilo and left a family of six without a home.
Two adults and four children, ages 10 through 17, escaped injury in the blaze, which caused nearly $300,000 in damage, said HFD Capt. Emmit Kane.
"It would have been real easy for this to have been a tragedy," said Kane. "Fortunately, the whole family did get out. The father and son were out of the house at the time doing their paper route. The mom, I guess, is a light sleeper and heard the crackling of the fire and got the rest of the family out before they were really exposed to the smoke or flames."
Once everyone was safely outside, the woman called the Fire Department, he said.
The fire at 92-1042 Kanehoa Loop was reported at 3:19 a.m. and the first firefighters arrived four minutes later, Kane said. Seven companies with 35 firefighters responded. The fire was under control at 4:53 a.m.
"There were a lot of combustibles in the attic area," he said. "So that contributed to the fire's spread."
Kane said the cause of the fire was not known, but investigators were concentrating on the patio in the rear of the house where the fire appears to have originated. He said firefighters do not suspect arson.
"The estimated damage to the structure was $225,000 and the contents $50,000," he said. "And the neighbor's home did received some heat damage, and that's estimated at $10,000."
The American Red Cross provided the family with food, clothing and personal items on the scene, and remained available for additional services.
"Red Cross did offer them housing," said Kane. "But the family has a lot of support in the community up there in Makakilo. So it sounded to me like they were going to stay with friends in the area."
Mike Edwards, a member of the Kahua Baptist Church in Kapolei, said the family were members of the church and the congregation had been providing food and clothing.
