KAILUA-KONA — No injuries were reported as part of a fire that burned more than 800 acres in Ka‘u Thursday, said the Hawaii Fire Department.
The cause of the fire is undetermined.
Several firefighting units were dispatched to the fire around 5:15 a.m., which was burning in a remote area of the Ka‘u coastline near Waikapuna Bay; units arrived on the scene just after 7 a.m. The area was described as “open pasture land along (the) coastline below Naalehu town.”
Responding units included engines, a tanker, a medic and two choppers.
When responders arrived, the department said, there was approximately 5 acres of grass and brush actively burning. However, much of the area was inaccessible to ground vehicles.
With the limited access to the area and strong trade winds, the fire continued spreading throughout the day. Responders used dozers to create fire breaks and choppers dropped water from above.
The fire’s spread slowed during the nighttime hours, the department said.
Much of the area was still actively burning at the time the fire department issued details about the fire.
Alan Gervasi, who lives in Mark Twain subdivision, said he first saw the fire around 5 a.m. — estimating the smoke plume to be about three miles away — when he got up to let his dog out.
By 10 a.m. Thursday, he said, the fire looked as if it had gotten bigger, and that afternoon, he saw helicopters making their rounds, dropping water on the blaze below.
The Hawaii Fire Department put the total acreage burned at 840 acres. About 4:30 p.m., Friday, Gervasi said, there were still active flames in the area of the fire.