Hawaii County firefighters were cutting a line around a 200-acre brush fire south of Waimea on Saturday.
The fire on Parker Ranch Land, sparked late Friday afternoon, was 80 percent contained in an area of grass and brush by mid-afternoon, Battalion Chief Ty Medeiros said. A helicopter began making water drops on the fire Friday afternoon, and bucket drops continued Saturday, drawing from frog ponds set up using water lines from the ranch.
A bulldozer was cutting a line around the burn area, located behind West Hawaii Concrete, while a tanker from Waimea was able to access the fire through a quarry area. Individuals from Parker Ranch and Department of Defense firefighters from Pohakuloa Training Area joined in battling the blaze. The northwest edge of the burn area remained active Saturday afternoon, but Medeiros said the fire was not moving quickly and would likely be contained shortly.