Wildfire!

So, yesterday, Keith and I decided to go Doordashing together. We have to do that on the other side of the island, since only three areas on Maui support it: Kahului, Kihei, and Lahaina. I almost always choose Lahaina. However, this time we were nearly trapped there.

It didn't start out looking like there'd be any sort of problem, weather-wise. Yes, rain was falling on the upper western Maui slopes, but not near the shore where Lahaina is located. The winds were pretty strong, though, blowing downslope.

So we did our dashing without incident, and decided to head back home about 9 PM. That's when we discovered the road was blocked, and we could see why: A brushfire on the slopes was being blown shoreward by the wind.

According to a report I found on the Internet, the fire was, indeed, blocking the road. The police had no idea when the road would be re-opened, and waned that the "back way" around the far side of West Maui was also closed (no reason was given).

And the cars were lined up for well over two miles.

So we found ourselves a scenic pull-over and parked. Luckily we had brought food for the dogs (also with us) and we'd eaten. So we actually fell asleep in the car for a bit.

After awhile Keith woke and noted the traffic had started moving again. So we continued on home, getting there about 3 AM.

In the morning we found that the winds had also blown things around on our side of the island, even nearly knocking over our kitchen table.

This was a "carport" I had put together (with help from Keith on pulling on the tarps) two days ago.

And this is how I found it after the winds. (No, it hadn't yet been anchored.) What's worse, it had landed in a thicket that will have to be cleared before the carport can be moved.