With drought conditions having already taken hold and expected to worsen over the summer months increasing the risk of wildfire, the state and Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization kicked off Tuesday the annual Wildfire and Drought Lookout! awareness campaign.
While recent rainfall has provided some reprieve for leeward areas of Kauai and Oahu, moderate to extreme drought continues to persist over areas of Oahu, Maui County and the Big island, according to Honolulu-based National Weather Service Meteorologist Derek Wroe.
“We are really early in the dry season right now. As people know, we are heading into the hotter and drier summer months, and projections call for rainfall to be below normal. As a result, drought will likely expand and worsen over the fire prone leeward areas,” Wroe said during a press conference held on Oahu. “These drier-than-normal conditions may linger into the beginning of the normal wet season in October and November.”
Wroe said the University of Nebraska’s U.S. Drought Monitor showed more than a half million Hawaii residents were already being impacted by drought conditions as of June 2.
The drought monitor tracks conditions weekly and the most recent data released on June 2, shows areas of extreme drought on Molokai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii Island. Only Kauai is currently drought free.
As of June 2, 55.99% of the Big Island was abnormally dry, 38.88% in moderate drought, 13.11% in severe drought, 4.09% in extreme drought and 0.4% in exceptional drought. Most of East Hawaii, from about Pahala around the Puna coast through Hilo and up the Hamakua Coast to windward North Kohala was drought free, as were areas of South Kona and North Kona.
The most severe conditions were recorded in North Kohala, particularly along the leeward coast where exceptional drought has set in. During exceptional drought, the worst category of drought, the public can expect to see widespread crop and pasture loss, exceptional fire risk, and shortages of water in reservoirs, streams and wells that could cause water emergencies.
“As people know, we’re heading into the much dryer, hotter summer months, so there’s no reason to expect any relief from the drought. We do expect the percentage of land in the extreme to exceptional drought categories to grow,” Wroe said.
The Wildfire and Drought Lookout! awareness campaign is a collaborative effort of dozens of wildfire and water management organizations and agencies statewide to provide wildfire and drought preparedness tips to the public.
The campaign comes after a highly active 2021 fire season in which the Big Island saw its largest fire in history burn over 40,000 acres in South Kohala, forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents from Waikoloa Village.
“Firefighting should be our last line of defense, all of us being aware, prepared for what’s going to protect our island communities this season,” said Dan Dennison, spokesperson for the Department of Land and Natural Resources. “The link between drought conditions and wildfire in Hawaii is already in full play and conditions this summer are expected to worsen.”
University of Hawaii Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management Ecosystems and Fire Extension Specialist Clay Trauernicht stressed the importance of preparing now.
“Most wildfires in Hawaii tend to be smaller in size when compared with other western states. However, most years, as a percentage of land area, Hawaii loses as much acreage to fire as all the large states on the West Coast and in the Western U.S. Fortunately, there is a lot we can do to protect our people and places from wildfire. We just all need to take preparedness action,” said Trauernicht who studies the impacts of fires on natural systems.
Honolulu Fire Department Inspector Carl Otsuka provided a brief overview of things the public can do ahead to protect property and life should a fire break out, commending community members of an Oahu neighborhood for instituting many of the protective steps through the Firewise Program.
“To protect their properties and their community they’ve created fire breaks near structures, are keeping their rain gutters and roofs clear of debris and keeping trees and vegetation cut-back,” Otsuka said. “As we are in hurricane season, similarly we want the public to be prepared for wildfires. With hurricanes come big winds, and wildland fires tend to move faster in high winds.”
Otsuka suggested, if possible, to cut a 10-foot fire break around homes and to get rid of green waste. When cooking outdoors, keep fire away from structures and vehicles and try to avoid burning woods like kiawe.
“They throw embers from your grill and could possibly start a brush fire or a house fire,” he said.
DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife State Wildfire Manager Mike Walker further reminded forest users that ground fires are always strictly prohibited on lands managed by DOFAW, which include State Forest Reserves and Natural Area Reserves. Campfires must be in a container such as in a barbecue grill or metal drum. All embers must be extinguished when the fire is unattended.
“We recommend campers and hikers carry extra water and fire extinguishers in their vehicles when in forested or vegetated areas, especially during dry, windy summer months,” Walker said. “Fire season is now year round. Over 90% of fires in Hawaii are human caused.”
In addition to impacting homes and communities, wildfires also impact the ecosystem.
“Unlike other areas of the world, when our forests burn, they don’t regenerate in response to the fire. It turns our watershed forest land into grassland. Fire impacts our coral reef ecosystems as well. Burnt soil runoff can choke our coral,” said Walker.
For more information on wildfire preparation, visit hawaiiwildfire.org/lookout.