Firefighters have contained a wind-swept wildfire that was threatening about 200 homes on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, nearly a year after an explosive blaze killed more than a hundred people on nearby Maui.
Residents of about 200 homes in a small, rural community on Kauai were told to evacuate on Monday, as firefighters worked to stop the spread of a fire between Hanapepe and Kaumakani.
Firefighters managed to contain the fire by Monday evening, and residents were allowed to return to their homes. The fire burned approximately 1.56 sq miles (4 sq km) of land . One building – a shed that was not attached to a home – was destroyed.
The blaze in Kauai comes nearly a year after the island of Maui was hit by the deadliest wildfire in the United States in the last century. Last year on 8 August, wind-driven flames ravaged the historic town of Lahaina, the former capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom. The disaster killed more than 100 people, destroyed about 3,000 buildings and displaced 12,000 residents, and people continue to struggle to find housing in the aftermath. Maui authorities have faced intense scrutiny for their immediate response to the fire. Earlier this year, an official report admitted multiple communications breakdowns contributed to the failed response.
The fire was reported around noon in the Hanapepe area, Derek Kawakami, the Kaui mayor, said. It spread fast, and officials warned residents in the area by activating a siren system, sending authorities door-to-door, as well as notifying them by phone calls and texts, Kawakami said.
Fire crews dropped water from helicopters and used heavy machinery to create breaks to prevent the fire from spreading. They also tried to stop the fire on the ground, the mayor said. Electricity was cut off to users on the west side of the island because of the fire.
The blaze was fully contained just before midnight. Kauai fire department crews stayed on site to maintain a fire watch, and sensors were installed in the area to detect any flare-ups.
Chad Machado, who owns JP’s Pizza with his son in Kaumakani, said he was making dough while the shop was closed on Monday when he noticed the fire up in the mountains.
“Within half an hour, it was two football fields away,” he said. He and his son tried to stick around, shooting water around the shop. But the smoke got too bad, so they went home to Kekaha.
“People were running out with suitcases, it was utter chaos,” he said. “So much smoke we couldn’t breathe.”
He said the town was a former sugar plantation community and landowners were using tractors to push the fire away, similar to what they did during the plantation era.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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