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Polipoli Fire on Haleakala Consumes 600-plus Forested Acres |
At about 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 23, a Polipoli State Park user reported
a fire on the Waiohuli Trail in the Kula State Forest Reserve. The fire was
located about three miles from the Polipoli camping area. Helicopters,
tankers and heavy equipment were dispatched immediately. However, within
two hours, the fire located on the southwesterly flank of the mountain,
approximately 6,500–7,000 above sea level, had spread over about 30 acres
of densely forested land. The County of Maui reported that no homes were in danger.
Department of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) sent crews from Molokai and
Lanai to join firefighting teams from the Maui Fire Department and the
county Dept. of Public Works. The campgrounds in Polipoli State Park were
closed as a precaution.
By Friday, Jan. 26, the fire covered at least 600 acres, and firefighters
from the state’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife, from Oahu, Kauai and
the Big Island of Hawaii, arrived to join the battle. By sunset on Friday,
the as the fire entered its fourth day, it was declared 30 percent contained,
despite earlier reports that the fire was 60 percent contained. “This reduction
in containment reflects the increased acreage of the burn area and is the
result of typical fire behavior affected by low relative humidity, the day’s
warm climate and the increase in wind. Difficult terrain and equipment movement
hampered by the dense forest affected our efforts,” said John Cumming,
Maui Branch Manager for the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR).
Responding to requests from Maui Civil Defense, DLNR and Maui Fire Department,
PDC supplied satellite imagery of the area with fire-trace mapping overlay on
Saturday, Jan. 27. As the burn area continued to both shift and increase, new
fire-trace mapping was also done on Sunday, Jan. 28. PDC took copies of the maps
to a community meeting in Kula and helped officials make a full presentation on
the fire and the firefighting in the nearby Upper Waiohuli/Polipoli area.
On Monday morning, according to a DLNR spokesman, the fire was 100 percent
contained, but 60 firefighters were still engaged in the effort to extinguish the fire.
Through the seven-day battle with the Polipoli fire, winds that were variable
both in direction and strength gave firefighters no help, but they did carry
smoke and much of the ash from the fire out to sea at a relatively high altitude,
sparing most populated areas from smoke damage or potential risks for individuals
with respiratory difficulties at most times. Small areas were affected briefly
by smoke and ash fall.
Fire weather outlook: Southwest winds (which became dominant on Monday, Jan. 29) will continue over the slopes of Haleakala and may be strong at times. A series of convergence bands will bring off-and-on showers to Maui over the next few days. A stronger front will bring a better chance of significant rainfall Thursday.
Above: The Poli Poli Fire burned through several nights, beginning on Tuesday, Jan. 23, often looking more like blazing lava flow than a forest wildfire. The fire is seen from Kihei in South Maui in this image. (Photo: PDC)
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| Ongoing | Information in The Maui News will be updated with each daily edition of the newspaper. A “search this site” feature also allows all stories to be located and listed. |
| Ongoing | The Honolulu Star Bulletin is also covering the Polipoli Fire. |
| Ongoing | Important general information about wildfires in Hawaii is on the PDC website. |