LAHAINA, Maui — A brush fire that has burned more than 1,000 acres of former sugar cane land on the mountainside above Lahaina was reported yesterday to be advancing toward the Pana'ewa section of the West Maui Natural Area Reserve, home to rare native plants and critical watershed sites.

The fire started Sunday, threatening homes in the Puamana subdivision and families along Kaua'ula Stream in a remote valley in the West Maui Mountains. One home in the subdivision was temporarily evacuated Monday and the Kapu family was airlifted out of the valley as the flames approached.

Members of the Palakiko family, who use water from the stream to farm taro, managed to fight off the blaze and save their homes by dousing the fire with buckets of water. However, the fire destroyed the pipes that bring water to their homes, said Danny Palakiko.

County spokeswoman Mahina Martin yesterday said no homes had been burned, although a small shed or two on the Kapu property reportedly was lost.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Yesterday, the firefighting effort benefited from light winds, said Deputy Fire Chief Neal Bal. The fire slowly moved up into the mountains, away from populated areas.

As 34 county firefighters tried to prevent the blaze from further threatening residential areas, 16 personnel from the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife worked on hot spots at the border of the 1,717-acre Pana'ewa section of the reserve. Aiding firefighters were three helicopters and several tankers and bulldozers.

The Pana'ewa section runs up steep, rugged terrain to Pu'ukukui peak, one of the wettest spots on the planet. The reserve contains a range of habitat from dry grasslands to wet 'ohi'a forests. Among the endangered plants there are the Lobelia gloria-montis, a member of the bellflower family, and Diellia erecta, a type of fern.

Bal said darkness halted the helicopter water drops but that personnel would maintain a fire watch throughout the night. Hokiokio Place in the Puamana subdivision remained closed to traffic.

Reach Christie Wilson at cwilson@honoluluadvertiser.com.