Recent brush fires ‘normal’ for Kauaʻi fire season

Following several recent brush fires on Kauaʻi in the last week, with at least two suspected to have been caused by arson, recent data from the Kauaʻi Fire Department shows the number of brush fires is similar to previous years.

“We’re definitely in the normal of, if you want to call it, our fire season,” said Kauaʻi Fire Chief Michael Gibson in a recent interview.

According to data from Kaua’i Deputy Fire Chief Roger Mills, there have been a total of 122 brush fires so far in 2024. That can be compared to 196 brush fires in all of 2023, 262 in 2022, 211 in 2021, and 193 in 2020.

Mills provided a breakdown of the number of brush fires by month from 2022 until now.
According to the monthly data, there have been 34 brush fires so far in July, slightly higher than the totals for the same month in 2023 and 2022, at 25 and 31 fires, respectively.

In an interview on July 19, while dealing with a large brush fire in Kokeʻe, Gibson said there was no reason to believe the recent fires had been intentionally set.

“Although all these three fires happened within a few days of each other, neither of them seem to be related in the ways that they were started,” he said.

However, days later on Tuesday, Kauaʻi County officials reported at least two of the recent fires are suspected to have been intentional. 

The first occurred on July 18, when the brush fire in Koke’e burned 1,600 acres of land before being fully extinguished on July 21.

The fire is now being investigated as arson due to incendiary devices found in the area. 

The other arson-related fire occurred on Monday afternoon when a smaller brush fire ignited in Waimea above Panini Place, burning approximately 40 yards by 20 yards before being extinguished by firefighters.  

The third fire occurred in the Hanapēpē-Kaumakani area on July 15 when approximately 1,100 acres burned, leading residents to evacuate their homes. The cause of that fire remains under investigation. 

Additionally, on July 16, a brush fire in Kapaʻa burned roughly 10 acres of land before being extinguished. Investigators found that the fire was caused by the improper charging of a solar panel connected to a car battery and have reported it as accidental.

After dealing with a string of brush fires within one week, Gibson noted the incidents can strain responses to other emergencies, as well as tire out firefighters.

“In the moment that the fires are happening, it stretches our resources thin, so it could delay responses to other incidents we have on our island,” said Gibson.

“And then the other side of that coin is they take their toll on us eventually. We’ve been very fortunate that none of our firefighters have sustained any injuries from the fire. But the more that we work them, they’re going to become a little more tired, a little more fatigued. And that’s my concern, is that they could get hurt because of the toll that all these fires are going to ultimately take on their bodies.”

Gibson, who was interviewed before revelations of some of the fires being arson-related, asked those on Kauaʻi to be cautious and report any signs of a fire.

“I can’t control when these fires happen, but all we can ask is, from our community, is that at the earliest sign of a fire, if they think they see smoke, please report it. Because the earlier we can get to a fire, the better chance we are going to have to put it out right away,” he said.

Gibson said the brush fire season typically starts in July and is expected to run well into, or past November. “That’s why usually in the month of May, early June, we try to promote wildfire safety and awareness,” he added.

During National Wildfire Awareness Month in May, the Kauaʻi Fire Department offered several tips for the public to stay safe, including refraining from all outdoor burning and cooking, avoiding mechanized equipment outdoors, not driving vehicles in dry grass, being aware of wind direction, planning an escape route in case of rapid-fire spread and reporting any possible fires.

County officials are continuing to investigate the cause of the recent fires and ask anyone with information to contact Kauaʻi Police Dispatch at 808-241-1711 or Lt. Kennison Nagahisa at 808-241-1705 and knagahisa@kauai.gov.