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The Honolulu Advertiser

Updated at 7:28 p.m., Monday, August 13, 2007

Gusting winds fanning North Shore brushfire - video

Advertiser Staff

 

This fire, which began Sunday, has burned more than 2,000 acres.

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Gusting winds this afternoon are fanning a flare-up of the largest brushfire to hit the North Shore so far this year.

The fire — which started at about 2 p.m. yesterday — had scorched at least 2,000 acres near Hale'iwa by 8 this morning.

Firefighters are now attempting to control the fire in Waialua — near Kaukonahua Road — and in the area of Poamoho Estates.

Firefighters are contending with winds of up to 30 mph, said Capt. Terry Seelig, spokesman for the Honolulu Fire Department.

City crews with bulldozers are now creating fire breaks near the estates. And Oceanic Time Warner is replacing 5,000 feet of burned fiber optics cable.

Firefighters this morning began limiting access to Poamoho Estates to residents, utility companies and emergency vehicles.

The fire jumped across Kaukonahua Road this morning and is now burning in a mauka direction, toward the Wai'anae Range.

It poses no apparent threat to property, Seelig said.

No injuries have been reported.

About 20 North Shore area residents were evacuated yesterday from homes on Hukilau Loop and Otaki Camp near Hale'iwa.

Nine HFD engines, five tankers and a helicopter are at the scene. In addition, the state division of forestry and wildlife is providing helicopter assistance.

The fire at one point yesterday got within 50 feet of homes in the Hukilau Loop and Kaukonahua Road area, damaging some farm equipment, said Capt. Earle Kealoha of the Honolulu Fire Department.

It also downed power lines and forced the closure of Kaukonahua Road, which police expect to remain closed over the next two days while Hawaiian Electric, Co. crews repair the lines.

"About 1,000 acres on the Kahuku side of Kaukonahua Road burned yesterday," Kealoha said shortly before 2 a.m. today. "It jumped over to the Wai'anae side of the road and burned about 500 acres and damaged some power lines.

Hear more from Kealoha in this ADVERTISER VIDEO.

Kealoha said the strong winds in the area yesterday spurred the fire's pace.

"The wind helped it spread downhill before we could establish perimeter control," Kealoha said.

Anticipating possible flareups, several engines and tankers remained at the HFD's command post on Hukilau Loop through the night and early morning.

When the fire flared at 3 a.m. and started approaching the road and housing again, firefighters were in place to fight the flames.

Janet Crawford, HECO spokeswoman, said power to 1,130 customers was cut off at the request of the Fire Department for safety reasons. The power was cut off at about 5 p.m. and power was restored three hours later at 8:19 p.m.

Today, HECO crews were bracing a pole that had suffered some damage, said Darren Pai, HECO spokesman, adding that no equipment was destroyed in the fire.

The damaged pole was part of a two-pole structure that supports a 46-kilovolt transmission line, Pai said.

"The pole does not need to be replaced but it was reinforced," he said.

See Google Maps for the site of the fire.