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A look at Hawaii volcano sending lava toward homes
« on: September 06, 2014, 07:55:59 PM »
A look at Hawaii volcano sending lava toward homes
Associated Press
By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER and MARK THIESSEN  9 hours ago



A fluid lava stream within the main tube of the June 27 lava flow from the Kilauea volcano Pahoa, Hawaii, Aug. 12, 2014. (AP Photo/U.S. Geological Survey)



Fluid lava streams from the June 27 lava flow from the Kilauea volcano in Pahoa, Hawaii. The June 27 lava flow is named for the date it began erupting from a new vent, Sept. 1, 2014. AP Photo/U.S. Geological Survey)



HONOLULU (AP) — Lava from one of the world's most active volcanos is creeping slowly but steadily through cracks in the earth toward a rural subdivision on Hawaii's Big Island. Scientists warn that if the lava flow from Kilauea continues on its path, it could reach a small patch of homes in about a week.

Here's a look at Kilauea, which has been continuously erupting since 1983:


THE LATEST

Lava could reach the Kaohe Homesteads, a sparsely populated subdivision, in four to six days after new vents on the volcano's northeast flank were spotted June 27. Lava has been flowing underground, filling cracks and then reappearing above ground farther down the flank.

The lava has flowed about 8.2 miles from the vent, coming within a mile of the eastern edge of the Wao Kele o Puna Forest Reserve. Officials have estimated that with the lava moving about 820 feet a day, it could reach homes sometime next week.

On Friday, Hawaii County Civil Defense officials took a helicopter flight over the area and said the lava was moving very slowly with very little vegetation burning. They said the flow had advanced only about 150 yards since the previous day.

While the agency has yet to issue an evacuation order, some people are trying to move livestock out of the subdivision, including cattle, pigs and horses.

Gov. Neil Abercrombie on Friday signed an emergency proclamation in preparation for lava crossing a major highway, which could cut off access to communities in the lava's path. His proclamation could allow officials to open abandoned roads as alternate routes.



Fluid lava streams from the June 27 lava flow from the Kilauea volcano in Pahoa, Hawaii, Aug. 29, 2014. (AP Photo/U.S. Geological Survey)


SLOW CREEP

This is not an eruption at the caldera, the things that make for stunning pictures as deeply red lava spews from the mountaintop.

Instead, it is lava slowly moving down the volcano's flank through a heavily forested area. The forest's thick tangles of vegetation and tall trees make it difficult to see, said Janet Babb, a spokeswoman for the Hawaii Volcano Observatory.


WHO IS AT RISK?

Officials do not yet know exactly how many homes could be threatened by the lava flow, and they are conducting door-to-door interviews in the Kaohe Homesteads to get a count.

The subdivision is in Puna, a lush, agricultural district where papaya is a major crop. Everyone in the district about a 30-minute drive from the coastal town of Hilo lives on the volcano.

Officials have warned residents in the greater Puna region to be on alert because the lava could change direction and threaten other communities.



Lava flows in to the ocean at West Ka‘ili‘ili in in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Dec. 27, 2011. (AP Photo/U.S. Geological Survey)


The state Department of Health advised residents near the lava flow to prepare for smoke from burning vegetation and low levels of sulfur dioxide. The smoke could trigger respiratory conditions.


COUNTRY-STYLE LIVING

Why would someone live on an active volcano? Unlike Honolulu, the state's biggest city on the island of Oahu, the Big Island's Puna region still has affordable land and can offer a more rural way of life.

Located on the island's southeast side, the area is made up of subdivisions like Kaohe Homesteads that have unpaved roads of volcanic rock that are not maintained by the county.

"It's got a country-style living that appeals to people and that's somewhat rare in Hawaii," county spokesman Kevin Dayton said. "People there live off the grid on solar and catchment water systems. It's sort of an independent type of person who's willing to rough it a little bit."

People who live there also know the risks. Dayton said there are special insurance requirements to buy land in certain lava zones.


HOW LONG WILL THE RISK REMAIN?

No one knows for sure if the lava flow will stop, change direction or hit homes. It also is difficult to predict when the flow will stop or if it will start again from another vent.

In the 1990s, about 200 homes were destroyed by lava flows from Kilauea.

The last evacuations from the volcano came in 2011. One home was destroyed and others were threatened before the lava changed course.


CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE

Kilauea is home to Pele, the Hawaiian volcano goddess. At a community meeting Thursday, some residents expressed anger at suggestions to divert the flow. They say it's culturally insensitive to interfere with Pele's will.


YOUNG VOLCANO

The U.S. Geological Survey says Kilauea is the youngest volcano on Hawaii Island, and she hides her age well. Officials estimate Kilauea's first eruption happened between 300,000 and 600,000 years ago.


DON'T CANCEL VACATION PLANS

Officials with Hawaii's tourism industry say there's no need for potential visitors to alter their vacation plans. The lava flow is an isolated event and won't affect plans to snorkel, surf or tan.


http://news.yahoo.com/look-hawaii-volcano-sending-lava-toward-homes-083212973.html

Offline Geo

Re: A look at Hawaii volcano sending lava toward homes
« Reply #1 on: September 06, 2014, 10:33:29 PM »
DON'T CANCEL VACATION PLANS

Officials with Hawaii's tourism industry say there's no need for potential visitors to alter their vacation plans. The lava flow is an isolated event and won't affect plans to snorkel, surf or tan.


http://news.yahoo.com/look-hawaii-volcano-sending-lava-toward-homes-083212973.html


 ;lol :D

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Lava inches toward Hawaii community: Kilauea’s Tutu Pele spirit strikes again?
Preparations for possible evacuation are picking up speed as a massive Kilauea lava flow on the Big Island of Hawaii approaches homes. Natives say the volcano’s guardian spirit is 'cleaning house.'
Christian Science Monitor
By Patrik Jonsson  6 hours ago


Capable of covering nearly a quarter mile a day, a massive Kilauea lava flow is burning thick forest and threatening human dwellings near Ka’ohe Homestead on Hawaii’s Big Island – reminding locals and tourists alike of the tempestuous nature of Kilauea’s female guardian spirit, Tutu Pele.

The current lava flow, which began June 27, is burning through mountainside forests as it descends toward the Pacific. Within a week, homes could be threatened and up to 8,000 people could be cut off if the flow covers Route 130, the major artery into the region.

Some residents have begged Hawaiian authorities to try to divert the flow, while others told officials at a public hearing on Friday that that there was no use trying to stop Tute Pele, “our ancestor,” as resident Ihilani Niles said, according to West Hawaii Today. “If she feels she needs to clean her house, then let her clean her house.”

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) said that if the lava continues to advance through ground cracks, the flow could reach the boundary of the Kaohe Homesteads in a week’s time.

Kilauea, the most active of Hawaii’s five shield volcanoes (the name means “much spreading”), is one of the world’s most interesting tourist destinations as it allows visitors to see the inexorable flow of hot rock up close.

It’s also a sacred place for the descendants of Polynesian sailors who first settled the islands about 1,500 years ago, a period through which Kilauea regularly erupted, sometimes violently. The volcano became mythologized as Tutu Pele, a beautiful, wise and tempestuous goddess who regularly reclaims her land from humans.

The hot fount has been a tourist hotspot since 1840, largely because of its uniqueness: Even as it’s nearly always active, it’s also closely monitored and, given its slow flow speed, harmless – unless one’s home is suddenly downhill from flow that can thicken to 50 feet.

Hawaiian authorities on Friday issued an emergency declaration, mainly to allow Big Island Civil Defense to keep roads clear should evacuation be necessary out of the area. More than 8,000 people would be affected if the lava overtakes portions of Highway 130, the sole major route that connects to the lower Puna area.

The Kilauea volcano has erupted from its Pu’u O’o vent for the last 31 years. The latest lava flow began on June 27.

Fickle lava flows have claimed dwellings throughout Hawaiian history. The most recent engulfment came in 2012 when the last standing home in the Royal Garden neighborhood, which was largely destroyed in 1986, burned up. "Time to move on," resident Jack Thompson sighed before being airlifted.

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory warned Friday that the main threats to residents for the time being are high sulfur concentrations and so-called “Pele’s Hair,” volcanic glass threads that are formed when lava ejects from a vent and is spun in the wind.

Meanwhile, some residents have already begun to leave, packing up their homesteads and moving livestock out of the way.

“We live in one place where lava is still existent, and whether you believe it’s Tutu Pele or just the science, the fact it is lava, you cannot change the direction,” Piilani Kaawaloa of Pahoa told officials at Friday’s public hearing. “It’s like me telling you, ‘Move the moon because it’s too bright.’”


http://news.yahoo.com/lava-inches-toward-hawaii-community-kilauea-tutu-pele-154250192.html

Offline Geo

Re: A look at Hawaii volcano sending lava toward homes
« Reply #3 on: September 07, 2014, 11:19:19 AM »
Darn. Should've waited a bit longer to buy tickets. Prices could've dropped a bit more. ;)

 

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