CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
A fire yesterday in Pearl City destroyed about 1,000 wooden containers and crates owned by Precision Moving & Storage Co. Workers moved boxes and photos in the aftermath of the fire.
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Fire destroys shipping containers
A Pearl City shipper's building and trucks are also damaged
A Pearl City fire burned for about 12 hours yesterday, destroying about 1,000 wooden crates and containers owned by a private shipping company.
The blaze between two warehouses of Precision Moving & Storage Co. on Oihana Place was reported about 2:47 a.m., said Honolulu Fire Department spokesman Capt. Kenison Tejada.
Eight fire companies with about 40 firefighters responded, and had the fire contained at 4:36 a.m. However, rubble continued to smolder until 2 p.m. Firefighters used heavy equipment to shift the debris around.
Precision is a private contractor for the military, shipping household goods in and out of the state for military families. But co-owner Rudy Alivado said the containers were mostly empty, containing only packing material like paper.
The fire also damaged a corner of one of the two warehouses, and sprinklers inside their offices caused minimal water damage.
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Smoke hovered near workers and firefighters yesterday during cleanup. The fire's cause has yet to be determined.
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The cause had yet to be determined yesterday, Tejada said. Alivado and his quality assurance manager, Ernest Moritomo, both believe it may have been caused by homeless people who frequent the area.
"I think they took advantage of the long weekend," Alivado said.
Along with the storage boxes, three big rigs were damaged. Food was found in one of the truck's cabs. The company also has had smaller fires occur due to vagrants.
"They've damaged our vehicles, smashed windows and have started cooking fires," Moritomo said. "We have security, but it's not stationary. It's a roving patrol, and apparently it's not effective enough."
Alivado said he expects the 4-year-old company, with about 50 employees, to recover within a week. They'll have to rent big rigs and immediately purchase new crates, which cost between $65 and $150.