‘It hurts like hell’: Volcano blows again; hundreds of homes ruined
Lava from Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano has destroyed 600 to 700 homes since it began flowing early last month, and there’s no sign of it stopping anytime soon, officials said Monday.
Punctuating that point, Kilauea erupted again Tuesday in a blast similar to a series of explosions that sent towering columns of ash above the island. A magnitude-5.3 earthquake accompanied the eruption.
“To all the victims out there of this very, very bad time, I say it publicly: It hurts like hell today,” Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim said at a news con- ference late Monday.
The eruption began May 3 in the Leilani Estates neighborhood, about 35 miles from the island’s largest city, Hilo. Lava oozed through the town for weeks, burning down homes and the surrounding jungle. In the past two weeks, more vigorous lava flows poured downhill to the coast, blocking roads and destroying hundreds of homes in the Kapoho and Vacationland areas.
The lava flows into the ocean, where it has created about 200 acres of new land while releasing dangerous gas plumes and causing explosions as the molten rock hits the cold water.
Many people whose homes have been destroyed don’t have insurance, and Federal Emergency Management Agency officials are working with local authorities to get disaster assistance to those who qualify. Many won’t: FEMA payments generally won’t cover second homes or vacation property or buildings erected without proper permits, and many of the properties in the path of the lava fall into those categories.
The lava flows have forced thousands of people from their homes, although many have been allowed to return temporarily, particularly in the Leilani Estates area.
“There is no magic wand for this event,” said Robert Fenton, a FEMA administrator. “It’s going to take a whole community effort.”