KOKE‘E — A brush fire was near full containment on Sunday after scorching approximately 1,300 acres since it started a few days earlier.
Final efforts to extinguish and fully contain the brush fire continued on Sunday, as ground crews from the Kaua‘i Fire Department and Department of Land and Natural Resources were on scene ensuring hotspots were extinguished. Air assets and other ground resources were on standby on Sunday, the Kaua‘i Fire Department said.
The fire, which was first reported on Thursday evening, led Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative to de-energize the Koke‘e circuit on Friday before re-energizing the circuit on Saturday. The decision to de-energize the circuit affected roughly 116 customers.
The brush fire also led to the closures of Koke‘e Road and Waimea Canyon Road, which both have since been reopened. No injuries were reported.
The effort to battle and control the brush fire was appreciated.
“I can’t thank our team enough for their diligent and unified response to this wildfire incident — which has been the third large brush fire we’ve encountered in just one week,” said Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami in a statement.
“Mahalo to all of our partners including the Hawai‘i National Guard, PMRF, multiple state, county, and private entities, and several community organizations who stayed on scene with us for several days to provide equipment and operators throughout the day and night. Thank you for once again answering our call and coming to our aid as we worked together to protect our community.”
A number of agencies were involved in battling the blaze, including Kaua‘i Fire Department, Kaua‘i Police Department, Hawai‘i Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Conservation Resources Enforcement, Division of Forestry and Wildlife, Department of Public Works and Pacific Missile Range Facility.
Lihu‘e Airport – Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting, Agribusiness Development Corporation, Kekaha Agriculture Association, Hawai‘i Emergency Management Agency, Hawai‘i Department of Transportation Highways Division, Hawai‘i Army National Guard and multi private contractors were also involved in fighting the brush fire.
