Little fire ants pose threat to Papakolea community, surrounding areas

PAPAKOLEA, Hawaii (KHON2) — Like so many areas on Oahu, the Papakolea community and surrounding neighborhoods are dealing with infestations of little fire ants.

Councilmember Tyler Dos Santos-Tam held a community meeting on Tuesday night, one out of three meetings scheduled to address public safety, development and invasive species.

According to the Hawaii Ant Lab, there are more than 71 active sites on Oahu, with two new detections recently reported near Round Top Drive.

“It’s a pretty extensive area that has little fire ants and our ability to actively control those sights, we’re far beyond capacity so we really need to engage with the public,” explained Chris Frohlich, Hawaii Ant Lab Program Coordinator.

The Community Action Plan is one of the few programs the Hawaii Ant Lab has to bring the community together and learn how to treat the ants themselves.

“Any fire ant is bad news and so we want to make sure neighbors are able to test, they’re able to identify, they’re able to tell the difference between little fire ants and other kinds of ants and really protect their property, their plants and their pets,” said Dos Santos-Tam.

By the end of the meeting, residents were able to identify, report and work with local organizations to help manage and reduce the spread of this invasive species.