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Hawaiian Electric Company said that power lines falling in high winds seem
to have caused a fire during the early morning of August 8, but power
lines in West Maui had been de-energized for more than six hours by the
time a second afternoon fire began in the Lahaina area.

The company made the comments in a new response Sunday to a lawsuit filed
by the County of Maui.

In a lawsuit filed Thursday, the County of Maui alleged the electric
company, known as HECO, “inexcusably kept their power lines energized” in
early August, despite the fact that the National Weather Service issued a
High Wind Watch and a Fire Warning.

The utility states the cause of that afternoon fire has not yet been determined. That afternoon fire ultimately grew into the inferno that
killed at least 115 people and damaged or destroyed more than 2,000
structures.

In a press release, HECO mentioned videos showing that power lines had
fallen to the ground in high winds near the intersection of Lahainaluna
Road and Hookahua Street at approximately 6:30am. But that morning fire
was declared 100% contained by the Maui County Fire Department by 9am,
they said.

The press release from HECO then explains: “Once the fire was out,
Hawaiian Electric emergency crews arrived at Lahainaluna Road in the
afternoon of Aug. 8 to make repairs; they saw no fire or smoke or embers.
All lines to Lahaina remained de-energized and all power in the area
remained off.”

Shortly before 3 p.m., while the power remained off, HECO said its crew
members saw a small fire about 75 yards away from Lahainaluna Road in the
field near the Intermediate School. They immediately called 911 and
reported that fire, the release says.

By the time the Maui County Fire Department arrived back on the scene, it
was not able to contain that fire, and it spread out of control toward
Lahaina, the release says.

In a statement to CNN Monday, John Fiske the attorney representing the
County of Maui in the lawsuit said, “To the extent HECO has information of
a second ignition source, HECO should offer that evidence now. The
ultimate responsibility rests with HECO to de-energize, ensure its
equipment and systems are properly maintained, and ensure downed power
lines are not energized.”

CNN asked Fiske for clarity on why they believe Hawaiian Electric has information on a second ignition source but did not immediately hear back.

Shelee Kimura, president and CEO of HECO, said, “We were surprised and disappointed that the County of Maui rushed to court even before
completing its own investigation. We believe the complaint is factually
and legally irresponsible. It is inconsistent with the path that we
believe we should pursue as a resilient community committed and
accountable to each other as well as to Hawaii’s future. We continue to
stand ready to work to that end with our communities and others.
Unfortunately, the county’s lawsuit may leave us no choice in the legal
system but to show its responsibility for what happened that day.”

Kimura also said that there are important lessons to be learned from this tragedy by all, and “we are resolved to figure out what we need to do to
keep our communities safe as climate issues rapidly intensify here and
around the globe. We invite others to do the same with us.”

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/28/business/hawaiian-electric-power-lines- fire/index.html

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