As of Tuesday afternoon, the Hawaii County Fire Department was battling three brush fires in North and South Kohala that resulted in mandatory evacuations for several areas.
The fires are located in the North Kohala District off Akoni Pule Highway (Highway 270) near Kohala Ranch and the others in the South Kohala District in Waimea, including one near the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.
Fire companies as far as Keaau on the east side of the island joined in on the battle.
The North Kohala and Waimea fires were reported at approximately 3 a.m. Tuesday. As HFD was battling those blazes they were redirected shortly after 3 p.m. to multiple fires that were reported in the area of Mauna Kea Beach Hotel and Kawaihae Harbor.
As a result of the brushfires, Akoni Pule Highway was closed between the 6 and 16 Mile Markers and Queen Kaahumanu highway was closed from the 69 mile marker to Kawaihae Junction and remained closed as of press time Tuesday.
Over 1,000 acres have burned at the North Kohala fire and was about 60% contained as of Tuesday evening. The fire in Waimea was located at Lalamilo with 20 acres scorched. That fire was reportedly contained around 10 a.m. Actual areas burned were hard to assess because aerial surveillance was unavailable.
The fires were encroaching on homes in all three locations but none have been damaged as of press time. Five bulldozers were cutting breaks in North Kohala and two at the Waimea fire with additional dozers sent to the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel area fire. Reports were made of the wooden bridge leading to Mau‘umae Beach catching fire.
HFD helicopters were not able to assist in fighting the fires due to dangerous high wind conditions.
Due to the proximity of the fires to various structures, Hisaoka Gym in Kapa’au and the Waimea Community Center in Waimea were opened as evacuation shelters. A mandatory evacuation was called for in the Kohala Ranch area, Kohala by the Sea, Kohala Estates and Kohala Waterfront. The Fairways North at Mauna Kea Beach Resort and the Villas at Mauna Kea were ordered evacuated around 5 p.m. Tuesday afternoon.
Waimea Middle School was closed Tuesday due to wind and fire conditions.
Power outages in the area may affect communication streams to the public. To receive timely and essential alerts, the County urges residents to sign up for Everbridge messages from Civil Defense. This service allows individuals to receive critical notifications. To register for this service, visit member.everbridge.net/371914103062563/login.
A Red Flag warning has been issued by the National Weather Service through Wednesday afternoon due to the high winds and dry conditions brought on by Hurricane Dora, which is passing south of the islands, but is producing 30 to 45 mph east winds with gusts up to 60 mph. Hawaii County Civil Defense reported winds reaching 82 mph at Kohala Ranch when battling the fire.
A Red Flag warning is issued when very dry fuels combined with strong and gusty winds and low humidity produce critical fire weather conditions.
While one structure was destroyed at Mauna Kea Beach Hotel as of press time, no homes have yet been affected.
The fire department reported one house roof was on fire at Kohala ranch but HFD personnel was able to extinguish the fire before it spread.
“Our guys took care of it. The team has been doing an amazing job,” said Mayor Mitch Roth Tuesday evening. “HFD, HPD, DOFA and PTA has been a great team effort in putting out these fires.”
Roth emphasized checking the county Civil Defense website for updates on county emergencies.