Hawaii County Civil Defense interactive map of roadblocks, subdivisions, and eruption fissures: hawaii247.com/lavamap
Hawaii County Civil Defense 6 p.m. audio message
This is a Civil Defense Message for 6 p.m., Wednesday, May 9, 2018.
Eruption update:
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) confirms fissure 15 in Lanipuna Subdivision has paused. Hazardous fumes continue to be released.
- 15 Fissures in this event
- 116.57 Acres covered by new lava
- 36 Structures destroyed by lava
Evacuation Update:
- HPD evacuated 10 homes at 3 p.m. on Alaili Road, west of Highway 130 between Malama Street and Kamaili Road due to steaming cracks in the road.
- Conditions permitting, Leilani Estates residents will be allowed to check on their property from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day until further notice. Be prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice.
- Civil Defense Recovery Information and Assistance Center (RIAC) at the Sacred Hearts Church in PÄhoa, Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Road Status Update:
- Highway 130 is closed between Malama Street and Kamaili Road.
- Pohoiki Road is closed from Highway 132 to 137.
- No access is allowed at this time for residents of Lanipuna Gardens due to dangerous volcanic gases.
Service/Utilities/Agency Update:
- Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV) is expediting the removal of hazardous materials offsite to Shipman Industrial Park.
- Mayor Kim assures that PGV hazards/risks will be mitigated in the best possible way.
- Spectrum has installed free Wi-Fi access at the Keaau Community Center, PÄhoa Community Center, PÄhoa Senior Center, Recovery Information and Assistance Center at Sacred Hearts Church, and the Food/Supply Center at the corner of Highway 130 and 132.
- The Kalapana Transfer Station is closed until further notice. The closure is due to the inability of the County’s commercial vehicles to safely access the site. The public can continue to use the PÄhoa Transfer Station, located in PÄhoa Village and open 7 days a week, from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
- Hawai‘i Electric Light reminds residents to treat all downed lines as live. Under no circumstances are you to approach or touch downed lines.
- Dept. of Water Supply has issued an Emergency water restriction for the Pohoiki, Vacationland and Kapoho area due to the impacts to the bypass waterline caused by the latest fissure event. Water spigots installed near the entrance of Lava Tree State Park and a water tanker in Vacationland are still available for the public to access.
- Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in effect. All aviation request are administered by the Fire Department.
- United States Postal Service announced that evacuated residents can pick up their mail at the PÄhoa Post Office.
- The Hawai‘i County Police Department and the Prosecutor’s Office have established a policy of zero tolerance towards looting or vandalism. Under Emergency Provisions, any looting or vandalism will be treated as a felony.
- DOH is working on updating SO2 data reporting online. Hawaii Interagency Vog Information Dashboard http:/ivhhn.org/vog.
- Contact the Humane Society for animal information.
Community Message/Alerts:
- PÄhoa High, Intermediate and Elementary schools and NÄwahÄ«okalani‘Åpu’u will be open tomorrow. Hawai‘i Academy of Arts and Sciences is closed for the rest of the week.
- A USGS meeting for the Volcano community is being held at 7 p.m. at the Kilauea Visitor’s Center. This is being broadcast live at http://naleo.tv
- The evacuated residents are going through a very difficult time. We ask for your help and understanding.
- County, State and Federal partners continue to monitor the situation. You will be informed of any conditions that affect your safety.
The summit lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u crater has dropped substantially over the past week due to intrusive and eruptive activity on the lower East Rift zone. This 3D model of the crater was created from thermal images collected during a helicopter overflight on May 8. The lake at this time was roughly 295 m (970 feet) below the floor of Halema‘uma‘u Crater. Imagery courtesy of USGS/HVO.
U.S. Geological Survey/Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Kilauea Volcanic Activity Notice for 8:02 a.m. Wednesday, May 9, 2018
At KÄ«lauea, when the lava column drops below the water table, groundwater may come into contact with magma or hot rocks, causing violent steam explosions.
Volcanic Activity Summary: The steady lowering of the lava lake in “Overlook crater” within HalemaÊ»umaÊ»u at the summit of KÄ«lauea Volcano has raised the potential for explosive eruptions in the coming weeks. If the lava column drops to the level of groundwater beneath KÄ«lauea Caldera, influx of water into the conduit could cause steam-driven explosions. Debris expelled during such explosions could impact the area surrounding HalemaÊ»umaÊ»u and the KÄ«lauea summit. At this time, we cannot say with certainty that explosive activity will occur, how large the explosions could be, or how long such explosive activity could continue.
Residents of the KÄ«lauea summit area should learn about the hazards of ashfall, stay informed of the status of the volcano and area closures, and review family and business emergency plans.
Resource on volcanic ash hazards: https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanic_ash/
Ash column rises from the Overlook crater at the summit of KÄ«lauea Volcano. HVO’s interpretation is that the explosion was triggered by a rockfall from the steep walls of Overlook crater. The photograph was taken at 8:29 a.m. HST from the Jaggar Museum overlook. The explosion was short-lived. Geologists examining the ash deposits on the rim of Halema‘uma‘u crater found fresh lava fragments hurled from the lava lake. This explosion was not caused by the interaction of the lava lake with the water table. When the ash cleared from the crater about an hour after the explosion, geologists were able to observe the lava lake surface, which is still above the water table. Photo taken Wednesday, May 9, 2018 courtesy of U.S. Geological Survey
HAZARDS
Primary hazards of concern should this activity occur are ballistic projectiles and ashfall.
BALLISTIC PROJECTILES
During steam-driven explosions, ballistic blocks up to 2 m (yards) across could be thrown in all directions to a distance of 1 km (0.6 miles) or more. These blocks could weigh a few kilograms (pounds) to several tons.
Smaller (pebble-size) rocks could be sent several kilometers (miles) from Halemaʻumaʻu, mostly in a downwind direction.
ASHFALL
Presently, during the drawdown of the lava column, rockfalls from the steep enclosing walls of the Overlook crater vent impact the lake and produce small ash clouds. These clouds are very dilute and result in dustings of ash (particles smaller than 2 mm) downwind.
Should steam-driven explosions begin, ash clouds will rise to greater elevations above ground. Minor ashfall could occur over much wider areas, even up to several tens of miles from Halemaʻumaʻu. In 1924, ash may have reached as high as 20,000 feet above sea level. Small amounts of fine ash from these explosions fell over a wide area as far north as North Hilo (Hakalau), in lower Puna, and as far south as Waiohinu.
GAS
Gas emitted during steam-drive explosions will be mainly steam, but will include some sulfur dioxide (SO2) as well. Currently, SO2 emissions remain elevated.
WARNING TIME
Steam-driven explosions at volcanoes typically provide very little warning. Once the lava level reaches the groundwater elevation, onset of continuous ashy plumes or a sequence of violent steam-driven explosions may be the first sign that activity of concern has commenced.
BACKGROUND
KÄ«lauea’s lava lake began to drop on May 2, 2018. From its peak on May 2 to the most recent measurement at 9 pm on May 6, the lava lake surface dropped a total of more than 200 m (656 ft). The subsidence was at a relatively constant rate of about 2 meters (yards) per hour.
Measurements of subsidence have not been possible since May 6 because of thick fume and the increasing depth to the lava surface. However, thermal images indicate continued lowering of the lake surface since that time, consistent with deflationary tilt recorded at KÄ«lauea’s summit. Therefore, we infer that the lake surface continues to drop at roughly the same rate. So, while HVO cannot report exact depths of the receding lava lake, we can monitor the overall trend.
USGS and HVO scientists are monitoring changes at the summit 24/7 and watching for signs that hazardous conditions have increased, or may increase. HVO is working closely with Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park and Hawai’i County Civil Defense to respond to this situation.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Updates on activity will be posted on the HVO website at https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/status.html
This map shows the locations of fissures and an ‘aâ€˜Ä flow erupted since May 3 in the order that they occurred in Leilani Estates as of 7:00 p.m. HST, May 8. The purple areas are lava flows erupted in 1840, 1955, 1960, and 2014-2015.
This map shows the locations of fissures and an ‘aâ€˜Ä flow erupted since May 3 in the order that they occurred in Leilani Estates as of 7:00 p.m. HST, May 8. The purple areas are lava flows erupted in 1840, 1955, 1960, and 2014-2015. The blue lines are paths of steepest descent that identify likely paths of a lava flow, if and when lava moves downhill from an erupting vent. The paths of steepest-descent were calculated from a 1983 digital elevation model (DEM) of the Island of Hawai’i, created from digitized contours. Steepest-descent path analysis is based on the assumption that the DEM perfectly represents the earth’s surface. DEMs, however, are not perfect, so the blue lines on this map can be used to infer only approximate lava-flow paths. The base shaded-relief map was made from the 1983 10-m (DEM). For additional explanation of steepest descent paths, see http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2007/1264. For calculation details, ESRI shapefiles, and KMZ versions of steepest descent paths, see https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/57fd072ee4b0824b2d130eb5.
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