Lava Threatens to Destroy Pahoa Town

The eruption of Pu'u O'o volcano on the southeastern flank of 4,000 ft. high Kilauea, is on the verge of sending a destructive lava flow into the town of Pahoa on the Big Island of Hawaii. A 4-month long vigil has been in place since the the latest lava flow started from a vent eruption near Pu'u O'o on June 27.

The lava flow has taken 4 months to travel the approximate 13 mile long path downslope in the northeastern direction. It is already on the outskirts of Pahoa town and threatens to overrun it this week.

Officials on the Big Island of Hawaii have been busy coordinating the evacuation of Pahoa residents and businesses as the lava gets close to town. Schools in the area have closed and will be consolidated in different locations to the north and south of the community dividing lava flow.

The lava flow is heading toward the ocean which is 6 miles downslope from Pahoa with many more homes and subdivisions in its path. Doesn't look very good for the community as long as this eruption continues in the current phase.

I haven't been to this area of the Big Island since 1978. It has changed a lot. The population has grown. It will be sad to see some or much of this destroyed.

Top photo: Pu'u O'o volcano in the foreground with a smoke plume billowing out of the main Halemaumau crater at the summit of Kilauea on the background. Framing the top of the photo lies Mauna Loa volcano which dominates much of the Big Island at 13,680 feet. Courtesy of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, USGS.




Hawaiian Volcano Observatory photos of the current lava flow that is making its way downslope to Pahoa. While the lava is fascinating sight to behold, its destruction is final and absolute. The entire town of Pahoa is at risk this week as the lava continues its movement down the mountain from its source at Pu'u O'o. We'll be revisiting this lava flow from time to time in the coming weeks. USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory photos link.
hvo.wr.usgs.gov/activity/kilaueastatus.php

The source of beauty, awe, destruction, pain and more, thjis is Pu'u O'o volcano on the infamous eastern flank of Kilauea mountain. At its summit Kilauea rises more than 4,000 feet above sea level and makes up about 13.7% of the Big Island's land area. The Pu'u O'o crater and its related vents have been continuously erupting since 1983. Thousands of yards of lava has flowed out of this volcano and overrun much of the southeastern flank of Kilauea, destroying more than 200 homes in Kalapana. This year a new lava flow that started on June 27 has made its way down the northeastern flank of Pu'u O'o and now threatens to wipe out the town of Pahoa and subdivisions beyond it. Photos from the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) - United States Government.

Links:

Kilauea Volcano Eruption Status
hvo.wr.usgs.gov/activity/kilaueastatus.php

Eruption Photos from the HVO:
hvo.wr.usgs.gov/multimedia/index.php?newSearch=true&d...

Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C4%ABlauea



Lava Flow enters Pahoa. Video by County of Hawaii. Posted by Earthspace 101.



The view of Pahoa Village Road in front of the Pahoa Post Office on the morning of Tuesday, October, 28, 2014. As lava enters the residential area to the west utility crews prepare power, cable and telephone lines and create steel and cinder barriers around the extended 70' poles where lava is expected to cross in the next 24-48 hours. Media conduct interviews with residents and Hawaii News Now is shown doing their live remote. (Hawaii Hqrbors Network)



ABC News Report on October 27. Lava flow to Pahoa.

Volcano Continues With Fissure Outbreak

Spectacular aerial view of the new eruption outbreak. Isn't this cool? The fissure has expanded and lava is spreading around. Luckily this eruption is occurring in a remote area of the volcano where the lava won't have much impact on homes and private property. There is also no public access to this other than through videos, pictures and text at the HVO website and videos posted to YouTube and other websites. Those lucky enough to afford a helicopter tour may be able to catch this.

Photo from the Hawaii Volcano Observatory.
Kilauea Eruption Update Photos

Crack in the World - Amazing Fissure Breakout

The ongoing saga of the 28+ year old Kilauea volcano eruption continues with this new fissure opening up away from the main activity area of Pu'uO'o crater. This video clip of just slightly over a minute captures the opening moments of a new "crack in the world" spewing hot lava from beneath the surface. Quite spectacular!

Additional Links:

• Hawaii Volcanoes Observatory
• Hawaii Volcanoes Update
• Hawaii Volcanoes Video Link
• Hawaii Volcanoes Webcam

Commentary

Volcanoes are quite fascinating. I've seen my share of eruptive activity when I was a lot younger and living on the Big island of Hawaii. Today I live on Oahu and rarely venture out to the area. My last trip to the volcano was in 2005.



Photo: Kilauea Volcano by macprohawaii. © 2005.

The Volcano is a hazard to many people living in Hawaii. Obviously those living down-slope from the volcano have been most impacted. Since the current Kilauea eruption started in 1983, hundreds of families have lost their homes in the Kalapana and Royal Gardens area on the Big Island's Southeast coast. Lava flows have covered up property and cost the state and landowners millions of dollars.

Earthquakes are also a statewide hazard. Most occur daily on the Big Island, but are too small to be felt. Big ones can impact any island, the most recent large earthquake having occurred in October of 2006. Check this link out for a list of destructive earthquakes in Hawaii.

People with respiratory problems suffer greatly from the "Vog" that often blankets the Big Island and the State on certain days (depending on wind conditions). The vog has created respiratory problems for many people who previously did not have such problems. It is an ongoing concern.



Huge plume of steam and ash rising out of Kilauea's Halemaumau fire pit in 2008. Photo by Alan Cressler.

More photos from my 2005 Volcano trip.

Boom! Welcome to Earth Day

Eyjafjallajökull Ash Cloud, originally uploaded by nic kirschner

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Ever noticed? One of the biggest polluters on Earth is Earth itself? This month that is most apparent with the huge volcanic eruption of Eyjafjallajökull Volcano in Iceland. A huge ash cloud has drifted over most of Europe crippling their airline industry and everything and everyone that depends on it after authorities throughout the continent banned flying for most of last week, due to safety concerns. Airlines and industries lost millions of dollars because of nature's furious pollution. The volcano was reported to spew like 7 tons of ash per second into the air.

Here in Hawaii, Kilauea Volcano on the Big Island has been erupting non-stop since 1983. The main crater, Halemaumau burst to life in 2008 creating its own ash cloud that has over time impacted Hawaii's pristine air with volcanic ash and "vog". Fact is vog has been an ongoing problem in Hawaii ever since the volcano started to erupt.



Volcanoes are not the only culprits screwing up Earth's environment. Huge environmental destruction is caused by hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, snowstorms, rain, floods and more. Most of this phenomenon occur naturally whether or not humankind had any impact on the environment. I think humankind's impact on most of the environment is quite minimal when compared to the fury and destruction our own planet and perhaps even the universe unleashes upon the Earth.

Thick Ugly Vog

Honolulu has been looking a lot like Los Angeles lately. Today the sky was filled with the thick volcanic haze known as "Vog" which drifted over 200 miles from the Big Island of Hawaii to blanket the entire State of Hawaii. The thick vog layer is a result of changing winds and the ongoing eruption of Kilauea volcano on the Big Island.

The Big Island's Kilauea volcano has been constantly erupting from the Pu'u'O'o vent since 1983. Millions of cubic yards of red hot lava has spewed out of the volcano and covered many miles of acreage along the southeastern areas of the Big Island. Lava reached the sea many times sending out clouds of hot sulfuric steam into the atmosphere. Some of these clouds have drifted over the islands through the years.

Last month, Kilauea's Halemaumau crater exploded into activity after a vent near a parking lot suddenly erupted sending a huge plume cloud of gas into the sky. The gas eruption started out small and eventually exploded into a larger event over the course of several days. Nearly a month later, the spewing gas has contributed more volume into the air than what Pu'u'O'o apparently delivers.

The island now has two eruptions going. Pu'u'O'o with its lava flows and Halemaumau with its spewing gas cloud. Note that Halemaumau has not had an explosive eruption since 1924. The last lava eruption from Halemaumau occurred in 1968.

The combination of the two eruptions and the shifting winds have created thicker vog and a greater health hazard to many people on the Big Island of Hawaii and throughout the state.

Volcano Links

• Photos: Voggy Sky in Honolulu, 4-25-08
• HVO Volcano Update
  
• Hawaii Volcano Observatory
• Kilauea Volcano
• Pu'u'O'o Volcanic Vent
• County of Hawaii Eruption Update

Kilauea Volcano on a clear, calm day... photo taken June 2005 by Mel. The 2 photos at the top of this article show the thick vog in Downtown Honolulu as seen from the 5th floor of the Hawaii State Capitol.

Kilauea Rocked by Earthquakes

A swarm of small earthquakes have hit the Big Island’s Hawaii Volcanoes Natonal Park area for more than 24 hours now. The quakes range from undetectable micro quakes to locally felt tremors of 3.2 to 4 on the Richter Scale. All of the quakes have been centered at Kilauea Volcano’s upper rift zone several miles above the current, active eruption.

As a precaution, park rangers evacuated a handful of campers within the national park and closed most of the park yesterday.

The earthquake swarm could be a signal that a change may be happening with the current eruption and that a new eruption could begin. Scientists are not exactly sure and say this is unusual activity for the volcano. The earthquakes also mean that hot lava is moving fairly close to the surface, about 1 to 2 miles under the volcano.

I just hope this latest geological activity on the Big Island does not trigger any earthquakes that are larger than yesterday’s 4.0, which was apparently only felt within the local area, and not statewide. No tsunami was generated.

• Kilauea Rumbles with 260 Earthquakes
• Kilauea Quakes may herald Lava Breakout
• Hawaii Island Earthquake Map
• Hawaii Volcano Observatory
• Discussion Topic @ HawaiiThreads.com