Hawaiian Electric (HE) has claimed that Maui County might be responsible for the second fire that devastated Lahaina. The push back on Sunday night comes after the county blamed the power company for the fires. The utility said that electricity had been switched off for hours, when the second fire created devastation, death and ruins. It said that the first fire was caused by power lines that had toppled due to high winds and could have caused the first fire but not the second. The utility company’s stocks rose by 40 percent on Monday.
Hawaiian Electric acknowledged that power lines appear to have caused the 6.30 a.m. brush fire in the historic town of Lahaina. It said that the fire started at the intersection of Lahainaluna Road and Hookahua Street. The small fire near the poles that had fallen spread to a field that was close to Lahaina Intermediate School.
Hawaiian Electric said that the Maui County Fire Department responded to this fire and the morning fire had been declared extinguished by the Maui County Fire Department.
Crews from Hawaiian Electric who were repairing the poles that had been downed earlier saw a fire at about 3 p.m. It appeared to be in the field near Lahaina Intermediate School, about seventy-five yards away. The crew immediately reported the fire to the authorities. The utility also said power had been switched off for hours, when their crew spotted the second fire.
The utility said the fire department was unable to contain the second fire that occurred in the afternoon. It spread towards Lahaina as firefighters were unable to bring the blaze under control.
State, local and federal officials are investigating the Maui wildfire. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has sent a team that includes an electrical engineer to help with the investigation. The utility said that it informed the ATF that it has records that show that there was no flow of electricity through its wires during the occurrence of the second fire.
Hawaiian Electric also said that the Thursday lawsuit filed by Maui County was disappointing as the investigation was ongoing in its released statement that also said that the company believed that “the complaint is factually and legally irresponsible.”
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