Little fire ants, an invasive species native to South America, are the stuff of nightmares. They deliver painful stings that can blind house pets, and can infest not only yards but the interior of homes, as well as croplands and forests. They measure only about one-sixteenth of an inch long, but according to the Oahu Invasive Species Committee, they are considered one of the world’s worst invasive species.

Little fire ants are a scourge, and Oahu must do everything possible to keep them from becoming permanently established. The good news is that it’s still possible — but only with cooperation and widespread assistance from residents, and redoubled, speedy state efforts to track and eliminate nests wherever found.

Infestations of the little fire ants have passed a point of no return for Hawaii island, where the ants were first seen in 1999, at a nursery in Puna — but the state still hopes to keep them from getting a permanent foothold on Oahu. Yet despite warnings from the state to be on guard, infestations have been detected at more than 30 sites on Windward and East Oahu, from Kahuku to Kahala. Recently, a Lanikai resident discovered the ants had infiltrated his home, stinging his two young children while they slept.

In fact, Lanikai has become “ground zero” for the infestations, according to Hawaii’s state House Rep. Lisa Marten — including the Mokumanu Beach Access. That’s a disturbing development, and part of the evidence that Oahu has reached a tipping point for ant infestation.

Residents’ participation can galvanize the state’s ability to fight back against these invaders, as Joseph Wat’s actions in Kahaluu last year demonstrate. Wat learned there were little fire ants near the Key Project’s community center, and took action — knocking on neighbors’ doors to get them involved with testing. Residents’ reports outlined the extent of the ants’ spread, and the Hawaii Ant Lab, a program of the University of Hawaii Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit, began eradication treatments on Sept. 20.

Wat says, rightly, that leaders in the community must step up to urge and coordinate testing, continuous monitoring and reporting. This is key.

Equally key: extensive effort by the Hawaii Ant Lab to prevent establishment of more colonies on Oahu, before the ants are so widespread that eradication becomes impossible. However, the lab unit assigned to track down and eradicate ants has only 2.5 employees. That’s insufficient.

Oahu must take note of the situation on Hawaii island, where residents now have no choice but to live with the little fire ants, which have become permanently established. That leaves residents responsible for regularly treating their properties to protect their yards and homes, while crops, wildlife, pets and people remain vulnerable.

Curiously, in the 20-plus years since they were first detected at the Puna nursery, no action was taken by the state Department of Agriculture (HDOA) to prohibit nursery sales of plants infested with little fire ants, or to require treatment by nurseries, until this year. That’s a disturbing oversight. The state says it can’t act until administrative rules are in place; rules were drafted earlier this year, but still await a yet-to-be-scheduled public hearing.

HDOA Director Sharon Hurd said the proposed rules are not ready for a hearing yet because the department intends to revise them, including clear language prohibiting movement of infested materials — but won’t have revisions until July. That’s frankly unacceptable, given the urgency and necessity of halting the ants’ spread. The state needs to speed up this process.

In the meantime, as with the state’s invasive, environmentally and economically destructive Axis deer, it’s justifiable to declare a statewide emergency, and to immediately fund and jump-start detection and eradication efforts.

Eradication is still possible on Oahu, if these tiny but fearsome ants are detected early enough. Residents can find out more about the little fire ant infestation, including how to detect and report little fire ants on a property, at stoptheant.org.