Wildfire, Hawaii
- When
- February 6, 7:00 AM HST to February 28, 11:59 PM HST
- Where
- Hawaii County, 8 mi SE of Volcano
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 19.602, -155.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Wildfire in Hawaii, February 6 to 28, 2003
A lava-ignited fire in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park--on the Big Island of Hawaii--burned more than 2000 acres of mainly brush land through the end of February. The fire did get close enough to Chain of Craters Road to shut it down from time to time, which prevented local residents and tourists from seeing the lava flows from Kilauea Volcano.
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 lava-ignited fire in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park--on the Big Island of Hawaii--burned more than 2000 acres of mainly brush land through the end of February. The fire did get close enough to Chain of Craters Road to shut it down from time to time, which prevented local residents and tourists from seeing the lava flows from Kilauea Volcano. Officials also had to move a couple of portable ranger stations and restrooms that had been threatened by the blaze. Local fire crews and some firefighters from the mainland battled the flames, but it was difficult to contain because the lava acts as a continuous ignition source. There were no reports of serious injuries or property damage.
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 6, 4:50 AM HST, 2 hours 10 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Feb 6, 4:50 AM HST, 2 hours 10 minutes before
NARRATIVE SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION FOR WAKE ISLAND WAKE WAS LOCATED AT THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE. AS A RESULT...THE SKY WAS MOSTLY CLEAR AND THE WIND WAS EASTERLY AT UNDER 10 KNOTS OVER THE ISLAND. A FRONT APPROACHING FROM THE WEST WILL TURN THE WIND AROUND TO THE SOUTH...AND THEN THE SOUTHWEST...WITHIN 24 HOURS...BUT OTHERWISE LITTLE CHANGE IS EXPECTED THROUGH THE PERIOD. NO SIGNIFICANT SWELL IS EXPECTED.
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
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, February 6, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Tennessee, February 6, 2003
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in New Jersey, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Virginia, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Winter Weather in Georgia, February 6, 2003
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Maryland, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Winter Storm in Virginia, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Missouri, February 6, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, February 6, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Oklahoma, February 6, 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: 5328997.