Fire at HC&S Burns 200 Heavy Equipment Tires

Tire fire at HC&S, Nov. 2, 2013. Photo by Nikki Caccamo.

By Wendy Osher

An evening fire near the HC&S Sugar Mill in Puʻunēnē burned a pit containing 200 heavy equipment tires, fire officials said.

The incident was reported at 5:15 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2013, to the rear of the Mill off of Hansen Road.

Firefighters from Kahului, Wailuku, and Wailea responded to the incident, and arrived to find an area about 200 square feet on fire, said Maui Fire Services Chief Lee Mainaga.

The fire was 50% involved, and was brought under control by 7:50 p.m., fire officials said.

Authorities say no other exposures were threatened and no injuries were reported.

The tires, considered scrap, had no monetary value, according to FS Chief Mainaga.

The cause of the fire was undetermined at last report.

The fire comes on the heels of a separate fire reported at the company’s pump house on Oct. 18, that caused an estimated $500,000; and a fire at the company’s Puʻunēnē mill that caused an estimated $13,000 in damage to equipment at the facility on Saturday, Oct. 12.