Fissures spread from Hawaii volcano, threatening more homes
PAHOA, Hawaii: Emergency crews said they were poised to evacuate more people as fissures kept spreading from Hawaii’s erupting Kilauea volcano, five days after it started exploding.
Around 1,700 people have already been ordered to leave their homes after lava crept into neighborhoods and deadly volcanic gases belched up through cracks in the earth.
The evacuation zone could now grow as fissures are spreading into new areas on the eastern side of the Big Island, Hawaii Civic Defense Administrator Talmadge Magno told a community meeting
“If things get dicey, you got to get out,” he said. “If you live in the surrounding communities ... be prepared. Evacuation could come at any time.”
Kilaueax has opened 12 volcanic vents since it started sending out fountains and rivers of lava on Thursday, officials said. Lava was not flowing from any of the vents on Monday.
Resident Heide Austin said she left her home just west of the current eruption zone after noticing small cracks appearing at the end of her driveway.
One eruption near her home “sounded like a huge blowtorch going off,” said the 77-year-old who lives alone. “That’s when I really got into a frenzy.”
Many of the evacuated people were permitted to return home during daylight hours on Sunday and Monday, during a lull in seismic activity.
Residents of a second area, Lanipuna Gardens, were barred from returning home on Monday due to deadly volcanic gases.
Leilani Estates, about 19km from the volcano, was evacuated due to the risk of sulfur dioxide gas, which can be life threatening at high levels.
No deaths or major injuries have been reported. At least 35 structures had been destroyed, many of them homes, officials said.
The southeast corner of the island was rocked by a powerful magnitude 6.9 earthquake on the volcano’s south flank on Friday. More earthquakes and eruptions have been forecast.
Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, has been in constant eruption for 35 years.
LEILANI ESTATES, United States: More than two dozen homes have been destroyed and dozens more are threatened by red-hot lava seeping from the Kilauea volcano, the most active in Hawaii, civil defence officials said.
Evacuation orders remained in place Monday for hundreds of residents of the Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens areas in the eastern part of Hawaii’s Big Island.
Hawaii’s Civil Defence Agency, in its latest update, said 26 homes have been destroyed by lava oozing up from fissures in the ground.
Aerial footage showed orange streams of lava snaking through the Leilani Estates neighbourhood, covering streets and igniting small fires.
Residents of Leilani Estates were allowed to return to their homes on Sunday between 7.00am and 6.00pm to check on their properties and remove belongings.
But residents were warned to be ready to flee at a moment’s notice.
“Because of unstable conditions that involve toxic gas, earthquakes and lava activities, lines of safety can change at any time,” the Civil Defence Agency said.
“The high levels of sulfur dioxide are a threat to all who become exposed,” it said.
Among those who lost their homes was Amber Makuakane.
A GoFundMe page was set up to raise money for the 37-yearold elementary school teacher and single mother of two young children.
As of Monday morning, more than US$29,000 had been raised for Makuakane, whose parents also live in the Leilani Estates area and have also been forced to flee their home.
Makuakane thanked the donors on the page saying “my heart is full of gratitude for each and everyone of you.”
“It is true that the spirit of Aloha is alive and well,” she said.
Aloha is a traditional Hawaiian greeting that also conveys love.
Ten fissures in the ground have opened up so far, according to the Civil Defence Agency, spewing out lava and hazardous fumes.
Lava fountains have been observed spouting as high as 70 metres into the air.
Kilauea, which rises to 1,247 metres, began erupting Thursday afternoon.
A magnitude 5 earthquake under Kilauea’s south flank preceded an initial eruption and there have been several severe aftershocks since then.
A quake Friday was measured at magnitude 6.9, the most powerful to hit the islands since 1975.
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said satellites had detected a gradual sinking of ground around the volcano summit in the two weeks before the first quake.
Kilauea — which according to Hawaiian folklore is home to Pele, the volcano goddess — saw nearly continuous activity during the 19th century.
It is one of five currently active volcanoes on the archipelago’s Big Island.