UPDATE: Dryer May Have Caused Kawailani Structure Fire

***Posted at 2:37 p.m., Friday, Sept. 13.***

A Waiakea Uka home sustained significant damage this morning in a fire that may have been sparked by a faulty electrical circuit in a clothes dryer.

A fire department spokesman said firefighters arriving at the home at 475 W. Kawailani St. found about a third of the structure in flames.

The fire reported at 6:07 a.m. began in the home’s garage and spread to an upstairs living area, and then into the home’s main living area.

Damage to the $240,000 home was estimated at $80,000. The fire also destroyed two vehicles in the garage, a Toyota Corolla and Toyota Pre-Runner pickup, which had a combined value of $20,000, the spokesman said.

The lone occupant of the home escaped without injuries and was receiving assistance from the Red Cross.

It took firefighters just under an hour to extinguish the blaze.

The fire resulted in disruptions to rush-hour traffic in the residential Waiakea Uka neighborhood.

Posted at 9:21 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 13:

Roadblocks set up because of a house fire on Kawailani Street just below Komohana Street snarled traffic for several hours in the Waiakea Uka area of Hilo this morning.

Police reported at about 6:30 a.m. that traffic was being rerouted at a number of intersections in the area to allow firefighters to battle the blaze.

The structure fire was brought under control by around 8 a.m. at which time the roadblocks were lifted.

No information  on the fire or damage it caused was immediately available.