A Kane'ohe man yesterday became the first person to be charged under Hawai'i's new arson law after he was arrested Wednesday night in connection with three deliberately set fires in Kane'ohe over the past five weeks.

Christopher A. Buckley, 42, was charged yesterday afternoon with three counts of second-degree arson. He is accused of setting fire to a gas pump at a Shell gas station in Kane'ohe on July 22 and again Wednesday night, as well as igniting a garbage can in the Kane'ohe post office Wednesday night.

If convicted, Buckley faces up to 10 years in prison and a $15,000 fine on each count. Buckley was being held on $35,000 bail.

The new law was enacted in June. Police and fire officials had lobbied for an arson law for years because it carries stiffer penalties than a criminal property damage charge, which was how deliberately set fires had been classified.

Although this is the first time arson charges have been filed, the first arson investigation was opened following the June 13 fire that destroyed a University Lab School building. No arrests have been made, but police are investigating leads in that case.

"It's been two months since the incident, but the UH Lab case is not dormant and is actively being pursued due to new-found leads," arson investigator Detective Gary Lahens said last night. He declined to comment further

Honolulu fire Battalion Chief Lloyd Rogers said yesterday that the arson law is crucial for public safety.

"It's important because fires destroy lives, destroy property, and impact the whole community," said Rogers, who oversees the department's fire prevention bureau and fire investigators. "It's important we get people who are doing this. Whether they realize it or not, they're creating an unsafe situation for people they don't even know."

Rogers said these fires tax the department's resources and place firefighters in harm's way.

No one was injured in any of the fires that Buckley is accused of setting. But police said that several people had to flee after a gas pump was set on fire Wednesday night at the Shell station at 45-457 Kamehameha Hwy.

According to a police affidavit: Buckley entered the station's food mart at about 7:30 p.m. and bought $2 worth of gas. Buckley, described as a "frequent customer" by a store employee, then poured gasoline on the ground near a pump and ignited the gas, a witness told police.

Buckley then got into a 1989 Dodge pickup truck and fled, according to the affidavit. A store clerk shut down the gas pumps, and employees extinguished the blaze.

The owner of the station viewed a surveillance tape and identified the suspect as Buckley, police said.

About 50 minutes after that fire, police said a man set fire to a rubbish can at the post office, which is a few blocks from the gas station. A witness dragged the burning can out of the building before the fire did any damage.

A description of the suspect matched Buckley, and police went to his home on Meli Place in Kane'ohe and arrested him. Police said Buckley was wearing the same clothing as the man seen on the gas station surveillance tape.

Police also ran a check on criminal activities at the gas station and determined that a similar arson case occurred there July 22 and that the suspect in that case also matched Buckley's description.

Police Capt. Frank Fujii said Buckley was arrested for second-degree arson rather than first-degree arson because he "recklessly placed someone's life in danger." The more serious charge requires that someone "knowingly" endangers someone's life, he said.

Buckley's criminal history includes two felony convictions for forgery and theft, Fujii said. He also has five misdemeanor convictions, including a 1996 conviction for criminal property damage.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.