Hawai‘i firefighters respond to third structure fire in 3 days

No injuries were reported following a late-night fire in Paradise Park. This is the third fire in three days in which a structure was destroyed by flames.

Hawai‘i Fire Department responded to the blaze, located on 39th Avenue off of Orchidand Drive, at 11:35 p.m. When they arrived on scene, they found the 1,000-square-foot wood-dwelling, with a corrugated metal roof, collapsed to the ground with a charged power line crossing the driveway, blocking access to fire crews.

Firefighters were unable to immediately battle the blaze as Hawaiian Electric had to be called to secure the power line. After the line was secured, crews had to navigate a long narrow driveway to the structure.

No one was home at the time of the blaze but according to a neighbor, one person lived in the home. The cause is underdetermined at this time.

The fire was out at 2 a.m. Seventeen firefighters responded to the incident with three engines, two tankers, two ambulances and three additional units.

Fire crews responded to fires on Sunday and Monday where the structures were also destroyed.

The Sunday blaze occurred in Ocean View. One of the residents, a 19-year-old woman, told fire officials the flames started when an 18-year-old man, who had gasoline on his body from attempting to fill a portable generator, lit a cigarette and caught fire. The pair were taken to Kona Community Hospital where they are stable.

On Monday, an unpermitted structure in Puna was also burned to the ground after the resident said a lit gas lantern fell over.