Twenty firefighters from four Maui County Fire Department companies battled a blaze that destroyed the Pa'ia Elementary School cafeteria at 955 Baldwin Ave. early yesterday morning, fire officials said.

The alarm came in at 4:52 a.m. and the fire was under control by 5:30 a.m., according to Battalion Chief Alan Pascua, who said damage to the cafeteria was estimated at $459,000.

That estimate was for the structure itself, "not counting the contents," said Pascua. He said the total dollar loss had not been calculated, and the cause of the fire was under investigation.

"We still have our investigators there along with arson investigators from the Maui Police Department," he said. "They're all up there sifting through the ruins trying to figure out what happened."

The official report was not expected to be completed until after Christmas, Pascua said.

The rural school, established in 1908, has about 200 pupils, nearly half of whom are part of the Hawaiian Language Immersion program.

Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.