Wildfire, Honolulu
- When
- July 8, 12:30 PM HST to 2:00 PM HST
- Where
- Honolulu County, Haleiwa
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 21.455, -157.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Wildfire in Hawaii, July 8, 2003
A fire burned 30 acres of brush near Haleiwa, threatening homes and businesses. The fire started on the east side of the Joseph P.
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 fire burned 30 acres of brush near Haleiwa, threatening homes and businesses. The fire started on the east side of the Joseph P. Leong Highway and then jumped the highway to the west, moving within 50 feet of historic homes and stores near the North Shore Market Place. Firefighters evacuated 25 businesses as a precaution. The blaze also took out six utility poles, cutting power to 3700 customers in Waialua and Haleiwa. Smoke and flames, as well, forced police to shut down the Joseph P. Leong and Kamehameha highways in both directions for two hours. In the end, the fire did not cause any injuries, or damage to homes or businesses. The cause of the blaze was unknown, but fire officials believed it was suspicious.
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 8, 10:00 AM HST, 2 hours 30 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jul 8, 10:00 AM HST, 2 hours 30 minutes before
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI 10 AM HST TUE JUL 8 2003 SUMMARY...SHOWERY TRADE WIND WEATHER IS IN STORE FOR WINDWARD SECTIONS OF ALL ISLANDS...BUT CENTERED OVER MAUI COUNTY AND THE BIG ISLAND TODAY. AFTERNOON SUNSHINE SHOULD GRACE ALL LEEWARD BEACHES. A GENERALLY WET TRADE WIND PATTERN WILL PREVAIL THROUGH THE REST OF THIS WEEK AS AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH DESTABILIZES THE AIRMASS OVER THE STATE. TRADE WINDS WILL ALSO BE AFFECTED...WITH A SLIGHT DECREASE IN SPEED EXPECTED THROUGH SATURDAY. SATELLITE...A NEARLY EAST-WEST ALIGNED BAND ABOUT 170 MILES EXTENDS DUE EAST FROM MOLOKAI. OTHER CLOUDS...WITH EMBEDDED SHOWERS...LIE ALONG THE WINDWARD MOUNTAINS OF ALL ISLANDS. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT CLOUDINESS LAY ALONG THE WINDWARD SECTIONS OF THE BIG ISLAND...MAUI AND MOLOKAI. THE LOW CLOUDS IN THE VICINITY OF THE STATE WERE MOVING WEST WITHIN THE TRADE WIND FLOW AT 20 TO 25 MILES AN HOUR. DISCUSSION...STRONG HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED FAR NORTH-NORTHWEST OF KAUAI WILL GRADUALLY RETROGRADE WESTWARD THROUGH THE COMING WEEKEND. THIS IS IN ACCORD WITH A RETROGRADING MID-LEVEL RIDGE/TROUGH SYSTEM THAT WILL EVENTUALLY LOOSEN THE PRESSURE GRADIENT OVER THE STATE... AND KEEP TRADE SHOWERS ACTIVE ENOUGH TO PROVIDE SOME FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL TO WINDWARD AND MAUKA SECTIONS OF ALL ISLANDS. ONE BAND OF TRADE SHOWERS BROUGHT 1.5 TO NEARLY 4 INCHES OF RAINFALL TO WINDWARD BIG ISLAND YESTERDAY THROUGH EARLY THIS MORNING...AND THIS BAND IS NOW POISED TO THE EAST OF MAUI COUNTY...READY TO BRING SOME FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL TO MOLOKAI...MAUI AND AGAIN THE BIG ISLAND THROUGH TONIGHT. WITH THE MOVEMENT OF A TROUGH ALOFT WESTWARD OVER THE STATE THROUGH THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS...EXPECT WET TRADES TO BE THE RULE THROUGH SATURDAY. BY SUNDAY...RIDGING WILL ONCE AGAIN BUILD OVER THE STATE FROM THE EAST. WHILE THE TROUGH WILL WEAKEN OUR TRADE WINDS THROUGH SATURDAY...THE RIDGE MOVING OVER THE STATE FROM THE EAST WILL AGAIN STRENGTHEN THESE WINDS SUNDAY INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. FARRELL .HFO...WARNINGS...WATCHES...ADVISORIES...NONE
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
- Flash Flooding and Flood in Ohio, July 8 to 9, 2003
- Flash Flooding and Hail in Ohio, July 8, 2003
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Ohio, July 8, 2003
- Flood in Indiana, July 8 to 31, 2003
- Wildfire in California, July 8 to 11, 2003
- Tornado and Flash Flooding in Indiana, July 8 to 9, 2003
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strikes in Illinois, July 8, 2003
- Hail and Damaging Winds in South Dakota, July 8, 2003
- Wildfire in California, July 8 to 10, 2003
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, July 8, 2003
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, July 8, 2003
- Flash Flooding and Lightning Strike in Missouri, July 8, 2003
More
Every storm in Hawaii in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Hawaii, July 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: 5327698.