Kauai County puts wildfire at top of latest hazard plan
Wildfire tops Kauai County’s hazard plan after a June 15 update and a new home-assessment program for the island’s highest-risk areas.
Kauai County posted its updated Multi-Hazard Mitigation and Resilience Plan online June 15, placing wildfire at the top of the island’s hazard list. The ranking points to safer evacuation routes, stronger brush management, better warning systems and more hardening around homes and infrastructure.
The Pacific Fire Exchange places Kauai near Mount Waialeale, one of the wettest places on Earth, but the island still faces wildfire danger because of steep slopes, rough terrain, difficult access and highly ignitable invasive grasses. A county wildfire risk tool rates Kauai County as having a very high wildfire risk, higher than 91% of counties in the United States.
The Hawaii State Hazard Mitigation Plan’s wildfire section, published in January 2023, identified Kauai as one of the counties most vulnerable to wildfire and counted 28 wildfire events among the changes since the 2018 plan. It also projected that Hawaii temperatures could rise by as much as 5 to 7.5 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century, with more consecutive dry days and less rainfall adding to fire danger.
The Kauai Community Wildfire Protection Plan was first developed in 2009, comprehensively updated in 2016 and updated again in 2024 with priority projects. Mayor Derek Kawakami signed Bill 2961 on Sept. 8, 2025, strengthening wildfire safety in West Kauai plantation camp communities, one of the areas where residents have the most direct exposure to fast-moving fire and evacuation pressure.
Kauai County announced a Wildfire Home Assessment Program on July 31, identifying vulnerabilities before flames reach a neighborhood. The 2026 update is designed to minimize risks, strengthen the county’s ability to withstand hazards and build long-term resilience across the island.
After the August 2023 Maui wildfires, which killed more than 100 people and became the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century, the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative enhanced emergency protocols for situations when the National Weather Service may issue a Red Flag Warning. KIUC’s Emergency Preparedness and Recovery Plan was first submitted to the Public Utilities Commission in 2006 and is roughly 500 pages long, according to a June 19, 2024 briefing to the County Council.
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