Wildfire in Hawaii, September 30, 2003

Name: Wildfire in Hawaii, September 30, 2003
Start: 2003-09-30T12:30
End: 2003-09-30T19:12
Location: Hawaii

September 30, 2003 · NWS HFO · 1 event in 1 county or zone

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.

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Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
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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 scorched about 200 acres in the Kalapana area of the Big Island of Hawaii. The fire threatened several homes in the Black Sands Beach subdivision, but firefighters were able to prevent the flames from doing damage to any structures. There were no evacuations or serious injuries. The cause of the blaze was unknown, but fire officials were looking into the possibility of arson.

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 Sep 30, 10:00 AM HST, 2 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 30, 10:00 AM HST, 2 hours 30 minutes before

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SYNOPTIC DISCUSSION AND GUIDANCE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
10 AM HST TUE SEP 30 2003

SUMMARY...A COLD FRONT NORTHWEST OF KAUAI WILL BRING KONA WINDS AND
SHOWERS TO KAUAI WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY. OTHERWISE WE WILL
SEE LIGHT WINDS AND PARTLY CLOUDY SKIES THROUGH THE COMING WEEK.
EXPECT TRADES TO RETURN BY SUNDAY...ALONG WITH SOME WINDWARD AND
MAUKA SHOWERS.

DISCUSSION...THE FIRST STRONG LOW OF THE WINTER SEASON IS PUSHING A
FRONT DOWN TOWARD THE ISLANDS. THIS FRONT MAY BRING SOME SHOWERS TO
KAUAI AND POSSIBLY OAHU LATE THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY...BUT IT IS NOT
EXPECTED TO PUSH THROUGH THE ISLANDS. RATHER...THE FRONT WILL STALL
NEAR KAUAI AND OAHU...WITH TRADES GRADUALLY RETURNING AND BRINGING
SHOWERS BACK OVER MAINLY THE SMALLER ISLANDS...THROUGH THE WEEKEND.
PRESSURES ARE FALLING STATEWIDE THIS MORNING...WITH THE LARGEST
FALLS OF 2 MB IN 24 HOURS AT LIHUE AND KANEOHE. THE FRONT IS STILL
SOME 500 MILES NORTHWEST OF KAUAI...BUT IS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 10
MPH. A THINNER BAND OF MID AND HIGH CLOUD IS JUST 100 MILES
NORTHWEST OF LIHUE...BUT THIS BAND DOES NOT APPEAR TO HAVE ANY
RAINFALL ASSOCIATED WITH IT. THE MAIN TROUGH ASSOCIATED WITH THIS
SURFACE LOW AND FRONT HAS PUSHED THE SURFACE RIDGE DOWN OVER THE
SMALLER ISLANDS THIS MORNING...AND THIS RIDGE SHOULD BE SOUTH OF THE
ISLANDS BY WEDNESDAY. THIS WILL BRING SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WINDS TO
MAINLY THE NORTHERN ISLANDS...NOW EXPECTED TO BE AT 10 TO 20 MPH. AS
THE FRONT NEARS KAUAI AND OAHU...THESE WILL EASE OFF AND BECOME MORE
LIGHT AND VARIABLE AGAIN BY THURSDAY...CONTINUING INTO THE WEEKEND.
TRADES SHOULD SHOW A RETURN BY SUNDAY...ALONG WITH INCREASED
WINDWARD AND MAUKA TRADE SHOWERS.

SURF...THE LARGE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM TO THE NORTH WILL HAVE A LONG
FETCH OF 30 TO 40 KT WINDS ALMOST ALL THE WAY FROM ALASKA TO
HAWAII. THIS FETCH WILL BE AIMING SSE TOWARD THE ISLANDS FOR NNW
SWELL/SURF BEGINNING ABOUT THURSDAY...AND CONTINUING INTO THE
WEEKEND. OUR ESTIMATE IS NOW FOR SURF HEIGHTS OF 10 TO 15 FEET ALONG
THE KAUAI AND OAHU NORTH SHORES. TYPHOON KOPPU EAST OF JAPAN HAS
TURNED EXTRA-TROPICAL BUT WILL CONTINUE TO BRING HURRICANE/TYPHOON
FORCE WINDS TO A LARGE PORTION OF THE NORTHWEST PACIFIC...WITH SOME
OF THIS FECTCH POINTED TOWARD THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. WHILE THE FETCH
AREA IS MOVING PERPENDICULAR TO THE DIRECTION OF GENERATION...THE
STORM SHOULD STILL PRODUCE SOME LARGE OPEN OCEAN SWELLS MOVING
EASTWARD FROM EAST OF JAPAN. AND WHILE HAWAII WILL BE SOUTH OF THE
MAJOR SWELL TRAIN...WE MAY STILL SEE SOME LONG PERIOD SWELL ALONG
OUR NORTHWEST FACING BEACHES OVER THE COMING WEEKEND.

FARRELL

.HFO...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, Hawaii

When: September 30, 12:30 PM HST to 7:12 PM HST
Where: Hawaii County, 6 mi S of Pahoa
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 19.602, -155.523 (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

Every storm in Hawaii in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Hawaii, September 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: 5327789.