Name: Wildfire in Hawaii, August 1, 2002
Start: 2002-08-01T12:20
End: 2002-08-01T21:15
Location: Hawaii

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS HFO wrote it up.

A brush fire burned around 100 acres in the hills above the Waialua High and Intermediate School. No structures were threatened by the blaze, but 17 people were evacuated for about one and a half hours from two homes and a monastery because of toxic smoke being generated by burning tires. A rancher also took his horses out of harm's way for a time when it appeared they might be affected by the flames. No injuries were reported. Fire officials were not sure how the fire started.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Honolulu, HI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 8:30 PM HST, 15 hours 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 8:30 PM HST, 15 hours 50 minutes before

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
830 PM HST WED JUL 31 2002

SUMMARY...HIGH PRESSURE WILL SLOWLY BUILD NORTH OF HAWAII OVER THE
NEXT TWO DAYS. THE TRADE WINDS WILL SLOWLY INCREASE IN RESPONSE TO
THE HIGHER PRESSURE. PLEASANT WEATHER IS ON TAP FOR THE STATE...WITH
ONLY A FEW NIGHT AND MORNING SHOWERS FAVORING WINDWARD AND MAUKA
SECTIONS.

DISCUSSION...PRESSURE DIFFERENCES OVER THE LAST 24 HOURS CONTINUE TO
BE ON THE PLUS SIDE. THIS TREND WILL CONTINUE FOR ANOTHER DAY OR
TWO WITH SURFACE PRESSURES ENDING UP A MILLIBAR OR TWO HIGHER BY
FRIDAY. THE TROUGH THAT BROUGHT US THE UNCOMFORTABLY WARM WEATHER IS
HISTORY...AND THE PRESSURE RISES REFLECT THE BUILDING OF A SURFACE
RIDGE NORTH OF HERE. THE TRADES SOUTH OF THE RIDGE ARE PRESENTLY ON
THE LOW END OF 10 TO 20 MPH IN MOST LOCATIONS...BUT WILL END UP
CLOSER TO THE HIGH END AS THE PRESSURE RISES. LONG RANGE PROGS KEEP
THE RIDGE TO THE NORTH...AND THE ISLANDS IN MODERATE TRADE WINDS
INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT MONTH. SATELLITE AND NEXRAD SHOW NOTHING
JUICY UPWIND...SO THE ISLANDS WILL CONTINUE TO BE DRY. CRAIG.

.HFO...WARNINGS...WATCHES...ADVISORIES...NONE

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.

Wildfire, Honolulu

When: August 1, 12:20 PM HST to 9:15 PM HST
Where: Honolulu County, 1 mi S of Waialua
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Wildfire: A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Hawaii in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Hawaii, August 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5324929.