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Maui firefighters are continuing to battle the island’s third fire in a week, a blaze that as of late Thursday had consumed more than 350 acres and was only 50% contained.

The Crater Road Fire broke out Wednesday evening and high winds spread it quickly over rugged terrain and into gulches. It was burning around the 7,000-foot level of Haleakala and about 200 cars and their occupants were trapped until Thursday morning near the top of the national park. All vehicles were able to make it down the mountain and fire officials said Thursday evening that they didn’t expect to evacuate any homes.

More than 20 ground and air crews, including four Alpha Construction and Goodfellow Bros. tankers, were focused Thursday on stopping progress toward residences and building or maintaining fire breaks.

There have been no reports of injuries or property damage from the Crater Road fire, according to the county.

It was the second fire in the same area in the past week. On Saturday evening, in the area off of mile 8 along Crater Road, a brush fire burned about 2 to 3 acres but was declared 100% contained by Monday morning.

Maui County Fire Chief Brad Ventura said Thursday the origin of the current fire is being investigated. He said he does not know if the Saturday fire contributed to the current fire.

Also on Monday, about 100 acres burned in a brushfire of fallow agriculture fields and a steep, partially wooded gulch near the junction of Pulehu and Omaopio Road in Central Maui.

At a press conference and in press releases on Thursday, Maui County officials described the response effort as much more timely and effective than what happened on Aug. 8 when a wildfire swept through Lahaina, killing at least 102 people and destroying much of the town. Upcountry fires that same day also kept the fire department stretched thin.

The Crater Road fire is in many ways a test of new technology, equipment and personnel that Maui County says it has put in place in the last year to improve disaster response and communications.

On Thursday, the county’s new head of emergency management, Amos Lonokailua-Hewett, told reporters that the emergency operations center was partially activated soon after the fire broke out on Wednesday and a unified command with the fire and police departments and Haleakala National Park was established.

that authorized the county to access federal assistance. Early Thursday morning, Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke also signed an emergency proclamation that enabled the Hawaii Army National Guard to deploy two large helicopters to Maui that can drop thousands of gallons of water.

The county also sent out alerts about the fire — which was moving fast in 40 mph winds across the undeveloped leeward slope of Haleakala — to the media and public via mobile phones and the county’s website and social media platforms.

Lonokailua-Hewitt described the response as “extremely smooth.”

Ventura added first responders have not had communication issues because cell and internet service has not been affected, which was not the case on Aug. 8.

Bissen told reporters at the press briefing that one difference compared to a year ago is that more experienced staff are now in many positions.

This includes Lonokailua-Hewitt, a former battalion fire chief, who in December replaced former MEMA administrator Herman Andaya. Andaya had no formal training in disaster preparedness and response when he took the job in 2017. Other members of MEMA also have been replaced, Bissen said.

Andaya quit nine days after the fire and just one day after he publicly said he had no regrets about deciding not to activate emergency alert sirens that many critics thought could have saved lives.

Lonokailua-Hewiit said he has multiple apps that help him identify incoming threats and allow him to quickly coordinate a response. He said he has been working on improving the sharing of information.

MEMA also is beefing up its workforce. The Maui County Council approved an increase in personnel from nine to 15 people this fiscal year, with the potential to go up to 22, Lonokailua-Hewitt said.

He said he has identified an experienced person to be his second-in-command, as well as other positions that include a chief planner and public affairs specialists. They are now going through the county hiring process.

MEMA is also using this fire to test a software program that it is considering buying for evacuations.

Lonokailua-Hewitt said MEMA has developed evacuation plans that include pre-identified routes out of defined zones to prevent bottlenecks and stalls.

The plan sets a threshold that triggers evacuations if the fire could hit residential areas in two hours, he said.

Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by a grant from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.