Wildfire in Hawaii, July 17 to 18, 2015

Name: Wildfire in Hawaii, July 17 to 18, 2015
Start: 2015-07-17T17:30
End: 2015-07-18T19:00
Location: Hawaii

July 17 to 18, 2015 · NWS HFO · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A fire blackened about 200 acres of brush south of Waimea on the Big Island of Hawaii, on Parker Ranch Land. The blaze did not threaten any structures or endangered plant life.

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 blackened about 200 acres of brush south of Waimea on the Big Island of Hawaii, on Parker Ranch Land. The blaze did not threaten any structures or endangered plant life. Its cause was unknown. No serious property damage or injuries were reported.

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 17, 4:00 PM HST, 1 hour 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 17, 4:00 PM HST, 1 hour 30 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HONOLULU HI
400 PM HST FRI JUL 17 2015

.SYNOPSIS...
LINGERING MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH A BAND OF LOW CLOUDS WILL CLEAR
THE ISLANDS FROM EAST TO WEST OVERNIGHT. MORE TYPICAL TRADE
WINDS...AND TRADE WIND SHOWERS FOCUSED OVER WINDWARD AND MAUKA AREAS
ARE EXPECTED TO RETURN SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. THE NEW WORK WEEK WILL
BRING WEAKER TRADES...WITH MORE WIDESPREAD SEA BREEZES DEVELOPING
OVER THE LEEWARD AREAS.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPED AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON OVER THE INTERIOR OF
THE BIG ISLAND DUE TO THE END OF THE UNSTABLE ATMOSPHERE MOVING
ACROSS THE ISLANDS FROM EAST TO WEST. HAVE EXTENDED THE AFTERNOON
GRID THROUGH 8PM TO COVER LINGERING SHOWERS AND THE SLIGHT CHANCE OF
THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH SUNSET.

EXPECT CONDITIONS TO IMPROVE OVERNIGHT. THE TROUGH AXIS IS WEST OF
KAUAI THIS AFTERNOON AND IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO MOVE AWAY FROM
THE ISLANDS OVERNIGHT. MIMIC TOTAL PRECIPITABLE WATER SHOWS ELEVATED
VALUES UPSTREAM OF THE ISLANDS ASSOCIATED WITH A NORTHWEST TO
SOUTHEAST BAND OF LOW CLOUDS JUST TO THE NORTHEAST OF THE ISLANDS.
THIS WILL CONTINUE THE CHANCE FOR SHOWERS OVERNIGHT. HAVE LEFT THE
CHANCE FOR LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL FOR THE FIRST HALF OF THE NIGHT
OVER THE AREA WEST OF MOLOKAI.

TRADES ARE STARTING TO MAKE A COMEBACK OVER THE ISLANDS...AND ARE
EXPECTED TO RETURN TO MODERATE LEVELS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY...WITH
SHOWER ACTIVITY RETURNING TO MORE NORMAL LEVELS FOCUSED OVER
WINDWARD AND MAUKA AREAS. HEADING INTO MONDAY...THE HIGH PRESSURE
SYSTEM FAR NORTHEAST OF THE ISLANDS GETS REPLACED...AND ONCE AGAIN
THE PRESSURE GRADIENT OVER THE ISLANDS WEAKENS. A FEW OF THE MODELS
HINT AT ANOTHER WEAK SURFACE TROUGH MOVING OVER THE ISLANDS MID WEEK
THAT WILL HELP WEAKEN THE WINDS AGAIN. DURING THIS TIME WE CAN
EXPECT LAND AND SEA BREEZES...ESPECIALLY OVER LEEWARD AREAS. AT THIS
TIME STILL EXPECTING SOMEWHAT LIMITED RAINFALL DURING THROUGH MID
WEEK.

&&

.AVIATION...
A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE ISLANDS REMAINS THROUGH
THE EVENING. OVER THE SLOPES OF MAUNA LOA AND MAUNA KEA...TSRA HAVE
POPPED UP WITH CB TOPS TO FL400 THIS AFTERNOON AND SHOULD BEGIN TO
SCATTER OUT THIS EVENING.

A BAND OF SCATTERED SHOWERS JUST UPSTREAM OF THE ISLANDS IS MOVING
TO THE WEST AT 15KT. THIS BAND IS EXPECTED TO REACH THE ISLANDS BY
04Z AND BRING MVFR CONDITIONS TO THE WINDWARD SLOPES OF ALL ISLANDS
TONIGHT WITH POSSIBLE PERIODS OF IFR...MAINLY ALONG WINDWARD SLOPES
OF THE WESTERN ISLANDS. CONDITIONS SHOULD IMPROVE EARLY SATURDAY
MORNING...RETURNING TO PREVAILING VFR CONDITIONS WITH ONLY PASSING
MVFR ALONG WINDWARD SLOPES. LIGHT TO MODERATE NE TRADE WINDS SHOULD
MAKE THEIR COMEBACK TONIGHT.

&&

.MARINE...
ALTHOUGH TRADE WINDS ARE LOOKING TO INCREASE OVERNIGHT...HAVE THEM
FORECAST JUST BELOW SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY /SCA/ CRITERIA FOR TOMORROW
AND SUNDAY. WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN BELOW SCA THROUGH MOST OF
NEXT WEEK.

SURF ALONG THE EAST FACING SHORES TOMORROW WILL GET A BUMP FROM LONG
PERIOD SWELLS FROM NORTHEAST PACIFIC TROPICAL CYCLONES ENRIQUE AND
DOLORES. THE FIRST BUMP IS EXPECTED SATURDAY...AND THE SECOND ON
MONDAY. THE RESULTANT SURF IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN JUST BELOW ADVISORY
LEVELS. A LONG PERIOD SOUTH SWELL IS EXPECTED LATE IN THE
WEEK...READ MORE DETAILS IN SURF DISCUSSION /SRDHFO/.

&&

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

&&

DISCUSSION/MARINE...M BALLARD
AVIATION...EATON

Event by event

1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.

Wildfire, Big Island North and East

When: July 17, 5:30 PM HST to July 18, 7:00 PM HST
Where: Big Island North and East forecast zone
Reported by: Newspaper

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 2015 Every state in 2015 This day in weather history Warnings in Hawaii, July 2015

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: 585927.