honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, June 30, 2007

Maui brushfire totally contained

By Christie Wilson
Advertiser Neighbor Island Editor

OLOWALU, Maui — Fire officials announced last night that a 2,600-acre brushfire that had been burning for three days was 100 percent contained.

The Hawai'i Air National Guard yesterday had dispatched a CH-47 Chinook helicopter to help tame the blaze that had been burning on the mountainside above Olowalu since Wednesday.

The twin-engine chopper is equipped with a bucket that can carry 2,000 gallons of water to drop on the flames. It joined three other helicopters, six water tankers and four bulldozers already in use.

Maui County officials requested assistance from the National Guard as "a proactive measure" to intensify firefighting efforts in mauka areas, and not because the blaze was in danger of burning out of control, said county spokeswoman Mahina Martin. Dozens of county firefighters and a state forestry crew have been battling the fire since it started around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday in Olowalu. Two firefighters were treated for smoke inhalation Thursday at Maui Memorial Medical Center and released.

The fire was 100 percent contained at 6:30 p.m. and fire officials reported yesterday that north- and south-flank firebreaks were holding. No homes were in any danger, Martin said.

Launiupoko residents who were evacuated from their homes at around 5 p.m. Thursday when flames raced toward the 140-home subdivision were allowed back six hours later. The flare-up, stirred by high winds, scorched two homes and burned a cottage owned by Wendell Payne.

Payne said he was watering down his yard when the flames spread a quarter-mile downhill within five minutes.

"It was all we could do to just drop what we had, grab our cars and run out of here," he said.

On Wednesday, the fire claimed an Olowalu home and destroyed Olowalu Nui Farms' hydroponic tomato operation, with farm owner Jon Applegate estimating the loss at up to $300,000.

After two days of repeated road closings that stranded hundreds of tourists and residents on each side of the fire, Honoapi'ilani Highway remained open throughout yesterday. The two-lane highway is the main link between West Maui's resort communities and the rest of the island.

But uncertainty over the road's status led about 200 people to spend Thursday night at American Red Cross shelters at the Lahaina Civic Center and Maui High School in Kahului. The highway was closed Wednesday night, forcing nearly 500 people to seek refuge at the shelters because they were unable to reach their homes or hotels. Dozens of others missed flights at Kahului Airport because of the highway closure.

The fire also disrupted telephone lines in West Maui on Thursday night, but service was restored early yesterday.

The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has authorized funds to offset local firefighting costs.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Reach Christie Wilson at cwilson@honoluluadvertiser.com.