The Honolulu Fire Department said the cause of a Nov. 3 Wahiawa blaze was undetermined and closed its investigation Friday, but there’s been no closure for one family burned out of the Olive Avenue home.
Kathy Kanakaole said she fears she and her family will be on the streets after spending almost all of their money to live at a hotel near the airport since the fire. The Wahiawa home she, her husband and daughter were renting was destroyed, and Kanakaole, 53, said she has no family who can take them in.
Kanakaole said she was able to quickly grab some of her husband’s medications, a towel and a blanket before flames engulfed the two-story house at 247 Olive Ave. But she said they have enough money to stay at the hotel only until next week.
“After that we’re out. I don’t have any more money,” Kanakaole said Friday. “If we don’t find a place, I don’t know what to do. We’re probably going to be on the street.”
Kanakaole said she worries about her husband, whose right leg was amputated and is on dialysis. Their 31-year-old daughter, Cherise Kanakaole, takes care of him, she said.
They previously applied for housing and have been on the waiting list for several years and have had no luck yet in their search to find other openings in the meantime, she said.
“It (the fire) was a nightmare. We lost everything,” Kanakaole said. “I’m just praying that somebody has a rental that’s ground-level who would be willing to rent to us.”
The family had been living at the Wahiawa house for about 2-1/2 years. She said they received clothing donations and some money from the American Red Cross, which she put toward the hotel bill.
Kanakaole, who is not able to work due to several health problems, recalled screaming after she saw flames burning down the house. The two-alarm fire caused about $300,000 worth of damage, according to HFD. A 35-year-old woman with non-life-threatening injuries was treated and transported by Emergency Medical Services to the hospital.
The property manager, Chris Murphy, who lives next door, said another family with two adults and three kids was living on the second floor. Kanakaole said they are staying with family members.
Nine fire companies with 31 firefighters responded to the 8:30 a.m. fire. The first unit arrived at 8:34 a.m. and found the second floor engulfed in flames. The blaze was under control at 9:21 a.m. and extinguished by 10:36 a.m., according to HFD.
“I was really worried about my husband, getting him out of the house,” said Kanakaole, whose 64-year-old husband, Lambert Kanakaole, is in a wheelchair. “I was just in total shock when I saw the flames.”
An online campaign for the Kanakaole family has been set up at gofundme.com/tk8khff8 and had raised $580 as of Friday.