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Contact: Jody Anastasio, 808-985-6020
HAWAII NATIONAL PARK, Hawaiʻi – A fire on Sunday afternoon, October 9, at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park’s newly acquired Kahuku-Pōhue parcel, was extinguished thanks to a coordinated response from Hawaiʻi County and National Park Service firefighter crews.
Hawaiʻi County Fire Department arrived first to the remote location and used a brush truck and two tankers from Ocean View and Pāhala to put out the fire. A National Park Service hand crew completed the final patrol and mop-up of the fire, according to Greg Funderburk, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park Fire Management Officer.
Park law enforcement is investigating the cause of the fire, but it is yet unknown. “We are still in drought conditions across the island, so people need to be careful with fire,” said Funderburk. Vegetation on the beach like fallen palm fronds and Pōhuehue (beach morning glory) burned within ten feet of two honuʻea (Hawaiian hawksbill turtle) nests. “The beach at Pōhue Bay contains important nesting habitat for honuʻea. The fire consumed native vegetation that provides nesting habitat and directly threatened active nests,” said Sierra McDaniel, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park Natural Resources Program Manager.
This unfortunate incident is a good reminder that public access to this area is currently not permitted. Until interim operating procedures are completed, and safe access protective of cultural and natural resources can be ensured, public access is temporarily restricted. There are no bathroom facilities, no formalized parking or capacity for trash removal, and emergency response is very limited.
For more information on the Kahuku-Pōhue parcel visit the park website.
About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 423 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
Last updated: October 12, 2022