A brush fire that started at the Spalding Monument in Kealia around 1 p.m. Sunday was quickly fanned by the brisk southerly winds and gave Anahola Hawaiian Homestead residents some excitement to end their long Thanksgiving weekend as they peered
A brush fire that started at the Spalding Monument in Kealia around 1 p.m. Sunday was quickly fanned by the brisk southerly winds and gave Anahola Hawaiian Homestead residents some excitement to end their long Thanksgiving weekend as they peered from atop their patios, spilled onto the streets, and generally recapped their weekend as they watched fire crews prepare to save their homes if necessary.
Far off in the distance, eyewitnesses estimated at about 1/4- to 1/2 mile off, an eerie orange glow attracted the blinking lights of Air One as it made passes in the darkeness to dump loads of water onto the leading edge of the fire, refilling initially from the Whalers General Store hydrant, then at the Kealia Reservoir.
On the makai side of the Homesteads, fire crews were parked in each cul-de-sac as a final defense to save residents’ homes should the fire reach them.
Eyewitnesses said that by 2:30, fire crews had contained the fire to about 100-150 feet in length at Kealia Road, but for unknown reasons, the fire circled around the fire fighters and erupted again.
“You should have seen it!,” one resident said. “The fire chief was on top of my roof commanding the firemen. The fire was one wall that ran the length (of the Homesteads).” That was around 5 p.m.
In addition to the fire crews, three bulldozers and a front loader were pressed into action creating fire breaks between the Homesteads and the approaching fire.
Fire crews battled hot spots continuously from the Kealia Road, the new communications building, and at the fire’s edge with the help of water drops from Air One, and by 7:30 p.m., residents started returning to their homes as the glow began diminishing.
