Thousands of residents who were forced out of Waikoloa Village by a massive brushfire Tuesday returned to soot-laden homes and businesses yesterday, while Big Island firefighters turned their attention to a new blaze burning in North Kohala.

The Waikoloa fire started Monday near Lalamilo Farms lots, charring 25,000 acres and causing county Civil Defense officials to call for the evacuation of an estimated 1,500 homes Tuesday afternoon. Although residents were allowed to return at 5 a.m. yesterday, Waikoloa Road east of the village remained closed until yesterday afternoon to make it easier for fire crews to shuttle back and forth as they monitored the fire and used bulldozers to improve a firebreak around the still-active southeastern edge of the burn area.

Waikoloa Elementary School was expected to reopen today after being closed yesterday.

No structures were burned and no one was injured in the fire, which Deputy Fire Chief Desmond Wery said was the largest he had seen in his 30-year career. The cause of the fire has not been determined.

Estimates of smoke damage were not available. Anna Lindsey, supervisor at the Waikoloa Village Market, said she and her staff returned to the store yesterday to clean up the layer of ash that had settled over the storefront. When the market re-opened for business, customers and their carts quickly spread the mess indoors as they tracked in ash from outside, she said.

Shoppers also appeared preoccupied with cleaning up. Lindsey said the store experienced a run on mops and brooms, and carpet-cleaning equipment was immediately rented out.

She said the store was evacuated at about 1:45 p.m. Tuesday as flames 4- to 5-feet high reached the edge of Paniolo Drive opposite the store, about 35 feet away.

Wery said there was little vegetation left to fuel the fire, but firefighters continued to monitor the area, and the few hot spots were hemmed in by a firebreak.

"The ground is so hot that the roots are burning underground, so with a little bit of wind it exposes the roots and we get a flare-up a little bit," he said. "Most of the fuel is pretty well burnt."

The North Kohala brushfire was reported at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday about 15 miles from where the Waikoloa fire began. Fire officials said it started when a car heading south on Akoni Pule Highway suffered mechanical problems and caught fire. One home had to be evacuated Tuesday night but it was saved when crews cut a firebreak around it, said Lanny Nakano, acting Civil Defense director.

Akoni Pule Highway was closed from the 7-mile marker to the 15-mile marker as the North Kohala fire grew to about 1,800 acres by mid-morning yesterday. At last report, Wery said "the fire is still running north, and it hasn't slowed down any. There's a lot of fuel here."

Civil Defense officials were checking for homes immediately north of the fire and planned to evacuate any residents in harm's way. Approximately 25 county workers, volunteer firefighters, state forestry personnel and private bulldozer crews worked to control the blaze. Four helicopters were conducting water drops, and Nakano said additional assistance was expected from a Hawai'i Army National Guard helicopter based in Hilo and a Chinook helicopter based at Wheeler Army Airfield on O'ahu.