An SUV was destroyed Friday in a West Maui brush fire that likely was ignited by the SUV’s hot exhaust system coming into contact with grass, Maui firefighters said.

Edward Taomoto, Maui Fire Department spokesman, said a 46-year-old woman reported she was driving her SUV through tall grass when the fire started at about 9 a.m. Friday in the hills above Kapalua Airport.

The woman said she had stopped briefly before noticing flames coming from beneath her vehicle. She escaped without injury.

Responding firefighters found a half-acre brush fire on the mauka side of the Mahinahina Water Treatment Facility, about 1-1/2 miles mauka of the airport, Taomoto said.

Firefighters brought the flames under control at about 9:50 a.m. and extinguished the blaze by 11 a.m. Taomoto said the fire was determined to be accidental.

Taomoto said the catalytic converter, on the underside of the vehicle, can reach temperatures of 500 to 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit and can easily ignite dry grass.