Two Hawaii Fire Department personnel were injured Friday amid a brush fire that broke out in vacant land off Kawaihae Road in South Kohala.
The fire was reported about 1:15 p.m. near mile marker 65 and had burned about 150 to 175 acres of wildland shortly before 3 p.m., said Hawaii Fire Department West Hawaii Battalion Chief Joseph Farias. No homes within the Kawaihae Village area are threatened.
The fire is located in nearly the same area burned during an Aug. 8 fire that consumed 3,000 acres. Firefighters are using firebreaks established during that fire to contain the current blaze, Farias said. On scene are Hawaii Fire Department, PTA Fire Department, Parker Ranch and volunteer firefighters. They are being assisted with water drops by Chopper 2.
Farias said that conditions had become favorable for fighting the fire thanks to overcast conditions and a decrease in wind speed.
Two fire department personnel were injured in a vehicle accident at the fire scene involving a Hawaii County apparatus and a second vehicle. Farias declined to provide any additional information.