KEAUHOU — Fire suppression units from Keauhou, Kailua-Kona and Captain Cook responded Tuesday afternoon to a fire that led to the partial collapse of a two-story structure on Holua Road.
The fire, said a witness, tore through the building, though no injuries were reported.
Max Stasyun, 24, said he had just moved into the building about a week to a week and a half ago. His bags weren’t even fully unpacked yet.
“First I thought it was a kitchen fire,” he said. “But as soon as I opened the door, I knew it wasn’t a kitchen fire.”
Including him, he said, there were three people living in the house.
Stasyun said that around noon, he was getting ready to do some yard work in the back of the building and decided to go upstairs to grab a beer. One of his roommates, he said, had just left to go to work.
When he got to the landing, he said, he saw about 3-5 inches of smoke coming out of a crack in the screen door that led to the back of the living room.
Initially, he said, he didn’t think much of it, saying he thought someone might have burned something cooking.
“As soon as I opened that door I look up and I see 2-3 feet of smoke,” he said, describing the smoke as a light gray.
Stasyun said he ran through the sliding door, checking for anybody else in the house before grabbing a bag, its contents spilling out. He said he didn’t see anybody else inside.
After getting that bag out of the house, he said, he went back in to grab a second bag, which contained his electronics and some more clothes. He got that bag out, he said, before making one last trip to get out everything that spilled out his first bag.
During the rush, he said, the bag with his electronics went missing from where he left it outside.
He said he never saw any flames inside the house.
“I didn’t even know,” he said. “I didn’t know if someone was cooking or burning some garbage or something … I dunno.”
Paul Wofford said he was out doing yard work at a neighboring house around noon and noticed smoke coming out of the top of the building.
Out of the far corner, he said, a flame “just came out of it.”
“Within 20 seconds, it shot through the whole house,” he said. “It engulfed the whole thing.”
He said he called 911 just after noon and units showed up in about seven minutes. Within 30 minutes of making the call, the second floor collapsed. He added that he didn’t hear anything or see anyone rush outside.
“Nothing suspicious,” he said.
David Massie, who lives across the street from the structure, said he saw the black smoke and came outside to see the second floor “engulfed in flames.”
“It went up fast,” he said.
Efforts to contact the individuals listed as the property owners on the county’s tax assessor website were unsuccessful.
Debbie Weeks, county director for the Hawaii County Red Cross, said they had a team of volunteers who were dispatched to assess the situation.
Once they determine the structure’s livability and confirm the residency of those who lived there, she said, they’ll be able to begin providing some assistance and helping those displaced by the fire develop a recovery plan.
Weeks said the organization assisted six clients as a result of the day’s fire.
She said those looking to donate can make financial donations at www.RedCross.org/Hawaii. Those looking to donate material goods, she said, should connect with community partners such as the Hawaii Food Basket or The Salvation Army. The Red Cross can be contacted at 935-8305.