Burn, Burns, Burnt, Burned, and Burning

West Maui is on fire RIGHT NOW.  As of 10pm last night, a Maalaea brushfire consumed 2,000 acres and forced the closure of all roads to the west side (Lahaina, Kaanapali, Kapalua etc.) and the evacuation of about 100 people.

Once we were done with our snorkel trip today and were about to trailer the boat out of the water at Kihei Boat Ramp, a guy approached us and asked if we could ferry part of a wedding party currently in Wailea to Kaanapali to attend a wedding tonight due to the road closure.

At Borders and Whole Foods, tourists as well as residents were chatting on cell phones and surfing on iPads (I know, I know) for the latest news about the roads.  Many people are stuck on both sides of the blaze.  Even the road on the north side of West Maui via Kahakuloa is closed.

Here's a shot I got this morning at 5:49AM:

Here's one from this afternoon at 2:56PM:

One thing to notice is how the fire progressed westward (to the left in the pics) in nine hours. With gusts of up to 40mph driving the blaze, the fire has now jumped Honoapiilani highway and is currently scorching the makai (ocean) side of the highway near the Pali tunnel.