Victim of Ulupalakua Home Fire Identified

Maui Police positively identified the charred remains of a woman found following a home fire in Ulupalakua over the weekend.  Dental records were used to positively ID the woman as 49-year-old Cheryl Lynn Ledbetter of Olympia, Washington.

The early morning fire at the Kini Drive residence was first reported at 1:13 a.m.   Fire crews found the home fully engulfed when they arrived on scene.  Crews from Kula, Makawao and Kahului responded to the blaze and brought the fire under control at 2:17 a.m.

During the clean-up and dousing of remaining hot spots, the charred remains of a female was discovered by fire personnel. The home had 3 occupants. One was uninjured and a second individual, a 61-year-old male who was identified as the owner of the home, was transported to Maui Memorial Medical Center with 40% burn injuries.

Police investigators report that it appeared that the 61-year-old man was injured while attempting to save Ledbetter – he was transferred to Straub Hospital on Oahu where he remains under hospital care.

Damage to the 1,000 square feet single story home was estimated to be $110,000 and $30,000 to its contents.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by fire and police investigators.

(Posted by Wendy Osher; Information provided by the County of Maui)