HILO >> A forest and brush fire in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park may have burned as much as 2,000 acres since Monday, but no accurate number is available because of conditions, said park fire management officer Jack Minassian. Big Island wildfire battle
gets slight weather boostBy Rod Thompson
rthompson@starbulletin.comConditions improved yesterday, but only to the extent that winds in the area dropped to 25 mph from the 50 mph on Monday, and humidity increased slightly, Minassian said.
The fire is still considered out of control.
An early morning helicopter flight today will give a better picture of the fire, he said.
One piece of good news yesterday was that the fire spared an area of lama trees that produce a wood that is considered sacred by native Hawaiians. Instead the fire pushed westward, toward Chain of Craters Road, through areas of ohia trees and scaly swordferns, Minassian said.
The head of the fire was moving toward the big hairpin turn in Chain of Craters, and the uphill side was moving further up to the point where it would eventually burn itself out after reaching the area of last year's 3,660-acre Kupukupu fire, Minassian said.
Two helicopters made water drops on the western head of the fire yesterday, he said.
No firefighters were on the ground in the area of the head. "There would be great danger. They would need to have an escape route," said park spokeswoman Mardie Lane.
But a 20-person crew was cutting firebreaks on the less dangerous, lower-elevation, seaward side of the fire, Minassian said.
Two mainland crews of 20 members each arrived on the Big Island last night and will be given orientation this morning, he said. Then a determination will be made whether conditions are safe enough to put them into the field.