The latest — and largest — of the recent Kunia brush fires destroyed 15 acres of sugar cane, but it appears that the wind directed the fire away from other farms in the area.
On Wednesday, the 600-acre fire near Kunia Camp was limited mostly to the slopes of the Waiʻanae mountains, and helicopters continued water drops throughout the afternoon. The location meant the fires were less of a threat to nearby farms around Kunia Drive than they were the day before.
After it started on Tuesday, the fire reached the heavily used Kunia Road, and some said flames managed to jump to the other side of the road at one point.
The fire prompted an evacuation of the area Tuesday, and destroyed 15 acres of sugar cane being used by the Kō Hana Rum distillery at Kunia Camp, or the Kunia Village and Agribusiness Complex.
That appeared to be the biggest crop loss from the fire.
“We had 15 acres of 36 types of heirloom Hawaiian sugar cane growing here. We like to call it our ‘museum collection.’ These are canoe plants that were brought to Hawaiʻi 1,000 years ago. Before contact with the Western world, Hawaiians were growing these crops,” said Robert Dawson, co-founder of Kō Hana Rum, at the distillery.
“Since 2009, we've been trying to cultivate and expand the production of these native canes. … And it just got wiped out — literally all 15 acres burned to the ground in this last fire.”
That sugar cane was harvested every year and used in the distillery’s rum. It’ll likely take over a year to regrow that area.
Dawson did say that it has about 1,000 acres of farmable land between Haleʻiwa and Waialua, so farming operations won’t be heavily impacted.
The brush fire also nearly reached Kunia Camp itself. On Wednesday, charred wooden pallets could be seen about 20 feet from the Kunia Country Farms’ aquaponics operations.
The camp is also home to a farmers market, the Hawaiʻi Farm Bureau’s office, a U.S. post office, Nutrien Ag Solutions, and about 80 single-family homes for agricultural workers who grow crops nearby.
The direction of the wind appeared to blow the fire away from their farms.
Tuesday’s brush fire is the largest of a string of fires in Kunia over about a week. While dry vegetation is prominent in the area, state and city crews also cut it back from the road to prevent fires there.
“I think everybody's been doing everything right, so I don't know if it's arson. But I would certainly say if you're driving up and down Kunia Road or you live in this area, just keep an eye out and watch for any suspicious activity or behavior,” Dawson said, “because it certainly does seem suspect, I think, to all of us out here.”
The Honolulu Police Department has opened at least one arson case related to one of the fires in Kunia.
On Wednesday, Kō Hana Rum was still holding tours of its distillery, although Dawson said it was noticeably quiet — likely because of the threat of the fires. He wanted to assure the public that the fires are under control and that it’s safe to visit the distillery.
As of Wednesday evening, the Honolulu Fire Department said 70% of the fire was under control. City, state and federal crews were all working to address hotspots.
The department said no injuries have been reported, and no structures have been damaged. An investigation is already underway to determine the damage estimates and the fire’s origin and cause.
