Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi promised “unprecedented enforcement” of fireworks offenses over the Independence Day weekend.
As part of the launch of Hawai‘i’s 2026 Wildfire LOOKOUT! public awareness campaign, Blangiardi urged residents to be responsible with fireworks and other celebrations over the holiday weekend to prevent the spread of fires.
“We don’t want to sound threatening, but we understand that some people just don’t get the message, no matter how hard we try,” Blangiardi said, adding that the disastrous fireworks explosion in Āliamanu that killed six people on New Year’s Day 2025 “will not happen again.”
John Bravender, meteorologist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said that although this year’s El Niño conditions have been anticipated to bring a “wetter-than-normal dry season” to the state, the increased winds associated with those conditions can still stir large wildfires out of small ignitions.
Honolulu Fire Department Battalion Chief Pao Chi Hwang said that fireworks mishandling is just one of many things that can trigger a blaze. Parking a car in dry grass, leaving a grill unattended, failing to properly extinguish a campfire, using heat-generating machinery — a chainsaw, a weed whacker — around dry brush, can all cause sparks that ignite dry grasses.
Blangiardi urged residents to report hazards such as overgrowth of dry grass or brush to 911 or the Honolulu Fire Department. Hwang said the HFD can send fire code inspectors to investigate potential hazards for fire code violations.
If inspectors find fire code violations, the HFD will work with the property owner or management company to mitigate the hazardous conditions, Hwang said. If they fail to correct the problem, Hwang said they can be fined up to $1,000 or imprisoned for up to one year for violating fire codes.
Nani Barretto, co-director at the Hawai‘i Wildfire Management Organization, said “basic maintenance and good housekeeping” goes a long way in protecting your property against wildfire. She said keeping a five-foot buffer away from your home — five feet kept “lean, clean and green,” clear of plants touching the house, of leaf piles or mulch beds — can mean the difference between a home surviving and a home burning.
Residents are also advised to make plans in case of an evacuation. Randal Collins of the City and County of Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said residents should have a go kit that includes vital documents and medications for 72 hours ready to go, and to think in advance about where their evacuation route will take them and communicate that plan with their families.
“Think ahead about the routes that you’re going to take and think about the situational awareness that you need to know when your home may be at risk,” Collins said. “Don’t be afraid to leave early. Leaving early is really important, especially when you need that extra time … you may want to leave before we even tell you to evacuate.”
Residents should sign up for emergency notifications at HNLAlert.gov, Collins said.
Meanwhile, Bravender said the National Weather Service has expanded its Red Flag Warnings for high wind conditions to be island-specific instead of having a single warning statewide. Residents can also stay up-to-date on fire conditions through fire weather forecasts issued twice daily, he said.
Nonetheless, Bravender added, wildfires can and have occurred outside of Red Flag Warning conditions. And HFD Assistant Chief Reid Yoshida said wildfires are not just hazards in rural areas, but in any neighborhood where homes meet open land or dry vegetation.
“Preparedness is one of the most effective tools we have,” Yoshida said. “The more prepared our communities are before a wildfire starts, the safer our residents, our neighborhoods and our firefighters will be during an emergency.”
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