Wildfire, Hawaii
- When
- February 22, 9:00 PM HST to February 25, 3:15 PM HST
- Where
- Hawaii County, 2 mi S of Pahala
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Wildfire in Hawaii, February 22 to 25, 2003
A wildfire scorched nearly 2000 acres in Kau District on the Big Island of Hawaii. Although most of the area burned was brush land, a state experimental agriculture station and fruit trees were damaged by the flames.
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
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 wildfire scorched nearly 2000 acres in Kau District on the Big Island of Hawaii. Although most of the area burned was brush land, a state experimental agriculture station and fruit trees were damaged by the flames. No damage cost estimates were available, however. There were no serious injuries. Lightning was suspected as the cause of the fire.
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 Feb 22, 8:30 PM HST, 30 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Feb 22, 8:30 PM HST, 30 minutes before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 830 PM HST SAT FEB 22 2003 SUMMARY...MORE NORMAL TRADE WIND WEATHER IS EXPECTED OVER THE NEXT WEEK OR SO FOR THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS...WITH MODERATE TO FRESH TRADE WINDS AND A FEW NIGHT AND MORNING TRADE SHOWERS OVER WINDWARD AND MAUKA SECTIONS. SATELLITE...SKIES ARE CLEAR TO PARTLY CLOUDY FOR THE MOST PART ACROSS THE STATE...WITH SOME CLOUDY AREAS OVER WINDWARD AND MAUKA SECTIONS WHERE ISOLATED LIGHT TRADE SHOWERS ARE OCCURRING. LOW CLOUD MOVEMENT IS FROM THE EAST TO EAST-NORTHEAST AT 20 TO 25 MPH ACROSS THE ISLAND CHAIN. AN UPPER TROUGH REMAINS TO THE EAST OF THE STATE...NOW MORE THAN 350 MILES EAST AND SOUTHEAST OF HILO. BROKEN TO OVERCAST MULTILAYERED CLOUDS WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EAST AND SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM 22N147W TO 09N153W TO 03N163W. THE SYSTEM APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN MOVING SLOWLY EASTWARD OVER THE PAST 12 HOURS. A COLD FRONT IS MORE THAN 900 MILES NORTHWEST OF KAUAI AND...ALONG 30 DEGREES NORTH LATITUDE. THIS HAS BEEN MOVING EASTWARD NEAR 15 MPH OVER THE PAST SIX HOURS. DISCUSSION...A STRENGTHENING SURFACE HIGH TO THE NORTH IS SUPPLYING MORE NORMAL TRADE WINDS TO THE STATE WHILE RIDGING ALOFT IS KEEPING THE AIRMASS OVER HAWAII STABLE AND DRY. ALL THE DYNAMICS OF YESTERDAY ARE BEING KEPT EAST OF THE STATE BY A STRONG HIGH LEVEL TROUGH...WHICH IS PROVIDING A FAST CONVEYER BELT FOR FLIGHTS TO THE WEST COAST. THIS TROUGH IS FORECAST TO WEAKEN OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS...BUT THE MEAN TROUGH POSITION WILL REMAIN NEAR 150-145W THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD. THIS WILL KEEP THE STATE IN ANTICYCLONIC NORTHWEST FLOW...MAKING FOR PRETTY NICE WEATHER HERE IN THE ALOHA STATE. FARRELL .HFO...WATCHES......NONE . WARNINGS.....NONE . ADVISORIES...HIGH SURF NORTHWEST SHORES KAUAI OAHU MAUI . AND MOLOKAI
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
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
- Tornado in Kentucky, February 22, 2003
- Flash Flood and Flooding in Virginia, February 22 to 23, 2003
- Avalanche in Idaho, February 22, 2003
- Tornado and Damaging Winds in Georgia, February 22, 2003
- Winter Weather in Vermont, February 22 to 23, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, February 22 to 23, 2003
- Heavy Rain in New Jersey, February 22, 2003
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Georgia, February 22 to 23, 2003
- Flooding in West Virginia, February 22 to 23, 2003
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in South Carolina, February 22, 2003
- Flooding and Heavy Rain in Virginia, February 22 to 23, 2003
- Tornado and Hail in Virginia, February 22, 2003
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, February 2003
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: 5329309.