WAIALUA Ð A "big beast" of a wildfire that has charred about 3,000 acres burned into its second night yesterday, prompting firefighters to alert some residents to be ready to evacuate.

The Fire Department last night advised residents of Otake and Ranch camps and a Catholic Benedictine monastery to prepare for evacuation, but no evacuation had occurred by 10:30 p.m.

The camps and monastery are situated behind Waialua Intermediate & High School, which was not being threatened by the fire.

"Our concern right now is for the safety of the residents," said Capt. Terry Seelig, Honolulu Fire Department spokesman.

The normal trade winds were increased by the approaching arrival of Hurricane Flossie, forecaster Norman Hui of the National Weather Service said last night. He said O'ahu can expect even higher winds today, which could make firefighting more difficult.

No one has been injured since the fire broke out Sunday afternoon, and fire crews expected to remain on-site through the night to continue to battle the blaze, Seelig said.

The fire, which came within 100 feet of homes in the Poamoho Estate subdivision, is being fed by thousands of acres of dry, fallow fields that reach to the Wai'anae Range, Seelig said. It also was being fanned by winds of up to 30 mph.

"It concerns us that there are so many areas," Seelig said. "Fortunately, not many are close to houses so we're able to maintain the protection around the properties."

Containment eluded firefighters yesterday as strong gusts whipped burning embers into areas that were thought to be under control. By midafternoon, the fire had spread from three sites to four, including the University of Hawai'i Experimental Station, where diesel and gasoline storage tanks added a heightened level of danger.

A nearby residence was evacuated and fire crews pulled away from the hot spot, Seelig said.

"It is a big beast," he said, adding that the fire Ð the largest this summer on the North Shore Ð owes its size to the blustery winds.

PREPARE TO MOVE OUT

Firefighters at 7 p.m. advised residents of Otake and Ranch camps and a Catholic Benedictine monastery to prepare for evacuation, pending the fire's position at 8 p.m.

The fire, which started at 1:41 p.m. Sunday below Poamoho Estates near the UH Experimental Farm on the Kahuku side of Kaukonahua Road, eventually jumped the roadway and has burned its way through the gulches to the mountainside. About 20 North Shore-area residents were evacuated Sunday from homes on Hukilau Loop and Otake Camp near Hale'iwa.

Seelig estimated the fire has burned more than 3,000 acres, making it one of the largest brushfires on O'ahu in recent years.

Yesterday afternoon, the Fire Department increased the number of companies from 13 to 25, and six federal fire companies joined them, accounting for about 130 people, he said.

"Our priority is to protect the exposure of the houses that are in the vicinity of unburned brush," Seelig said.

ACCESS LIMITED

Earlier in the day, firefighters limited access to Poamoho Estate to residents, utility companies and emergency vehicles.

Yesterday, Poamoho Estate resident Joan Santoro said heat from the flames torched many of her fruit trees, but firefighters kept the blaze away from her home Sunday night. Two flareups yesterday were keeping her on a vigil.

"We keep going outside and looking around," Santoro said. "You'd think there was nothing left to burn, but it's very windy and if an ember finds anything dry, it flares right up."

Henry Miner, who was evacuated from his home near the corner of Kaukonahua and Farrington on Sunday, said he's seen three fires near his home since moving there five years ago. This has been the worst, he said. But he was also glad to have all the dry brush burned.

"I'm glad this happened because now there's nothing for us to worry about," Miner said. "There's no place else to burn."

Firefighters had help from city and state crews in containing the fire.

The city provided two Public Works bulldozers to dig a fire break near Poamoho Estate, and the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife sent a helicopter to assist the Fire Department's helicopter, which was trying to extinguish flames in a gulch mauka of Kaukonahua Road.

Also, Department of Emergency Management volunteers were controlling traffic and turning back motorists on Kaukonahua Road past Schofield Barracks and at Farrington Highway, but residents were allowed to return home.

Others responding included utility crews. For example, Oceanic Time Warner is replacing 5,000 feet of burned fiber-optic cable that melted in the heat of the flames, said Ken Ching, with the Oceanic construction crew.

"Right now, we're stringing up a temporary line so that we can restore service," Ching said.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com and Rod Ohira at rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com.