Tag Archives: Volcano

‘Ash fallout’ alert after Hawaii volcano erupts in 30,000-foot plume

People watch as ash erupts from the Halemaumau crater near the community of Volcano during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 15, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – An explosive eruption spewed ash 30,000 feet (9,144 meters) into the air above Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano on Thursday and residents of the Big Island were warned to take shelter as the plume engulfed a wide area, authorities said.

The wind could carry the ash plume as far as Hilo, the Big Island’s largest city and major tourism center, the County of Hawaii Civil Defense warned in an alert.

“Protect yourself from ash fallout,” it said.

The 4:15 a.m. (10:15 a.m. ET) blast that sent ash and smoke nearly six miles into the atmosphere was followed by other emissions of up to 12,000 feet, the U.S. Geological Survey said in a statement.

USGS geologists and staff were evacuated from the summit shortly before the blast and a webcam showed a gray plume of ash and chunks of magma known as pyroclasts that showered the volcano’s slopes.

An aviation red alert was issued due to risks that ash could be carried into aircraft routes and damage jet engines, USGS said.

The eruption could not only enshroud large areas of the Big Island in volcanic ash and smog but other Hawaiian Islands and potentially distant areas if the plume reaches up into the stratosphere and ash is carried by winds.

National Guard troops donned gas masks to protect themselves from toxic sulfur dioxide gas at the intersection of highways 130 and 132, the main exit routes from the village of Pahoa, 25 miles (40 km) east of the volcano, where many of the ground fissures have erupted, a Reuters reporter in the village said.

Schools were closed in the area due to “elevated sulfur dioxide (SO2) levels,” according to a phone alert from emergency authorities

The volcano has destroyed at least 37 homes and other structures in a small southeast area of the island where lava has oozed from fissures, forcing around 2,000 people to evacuate their homes.

Geologists had warned explosive eruptions could begin once Kilauea’s falling lava lake descended below the water table, allowing water to run on to the top of the lava column and create steam-driven blasts.

The powerful explosions could hurl “ballistic blocks” the size of refrigerators across a distance of more than half a mile (1 km) and shoot pebble-sized projectiles and debris up to a dozen miles, the USGS has warned.

Kilauea, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, last experienced explosive eruptions in 1924.

(Additional reporting by Jolyn Rosa in Honolulu; writing by Andrew Hay; Editing by Bill Tarrant)

‘Ballistic blocks’ shoot from Hawaii volcano, may mark start of violent eruptions

People watch as ash erupt from the Halemaumau crater near the community of Volcano during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 15, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

By Terray Sylvester

VOLCANO, Hawaii (Reuters) – “Ballistic blocks” the size of microwave ovens shot from Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano on Wednesday in what may be the start of explosive eruptions that could spew huge ash plumes and hurl smaller rocks for miles (km), the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Such eruptions, last seen nearly a century ago, have been a looming threat since Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, erupted nearly two weeks ago.

Explosions in Kilauea’s crater sparked an aviation red alert due to risks the ash plume could blow into aircraft routes and damage jet engines.

More explosions are expected and may be more powerful, the USGS warned. These steam-driven blasts could send a 20,000-foot (6,100-meter) ash plume out of the crater, hurling 10-12 ton boulders up to half a mile (800 meters) and scatter pebble-sized rocks over 12 miles (19 km), the USGS has said.

This type of eruption has the potential to carpet the Big Island in much thicker ash than current dustings and possibly spread the powder and volcanic smog across the Hawaiian islands and farther afield if it enters the stratosphere.

“This morning dense ballistic blocks up to 60 cm (2 feet) across were found in the parking lot a few hundred yards (meters) from Halemaumau (Kilauea’s crater),” the USGS said in a statement. “These reflect the most energetic explosions yet observed and could reflect the onset of steam-driven explosive activity.

A 4.2 magnitude earthquake at the volcano at 8.36 a.m. (2:36 p.m. EDT) prompted authorities to issue an alert reassuring rattled Big Island residents that there was no risk of a tsunami from the volcanic activity.

‘DISARRAY AND FRANTIC’

In the community of Volcano, just north of Kilauea’s crater, business was way down and people were on edge.

In just a few hours residents had been shaken by an earthquake, dusted with ash and for the first time since the start of the eruption smelled the rotten-egg stench of toxic sulfur-dioxide gas.

“They’re just in disarray and frantic,” Adele Tripp, an employee at the Kilauea General Store, said of other residents. She said she had lived in Volcano for 30 years and was not personally concerned as she trusted scientists to tell her when to get out.

Smog from Kilauea drifted north up the island chain as the districts of Kau, Puna, and North and South Hilo were told by the National Weather Service to expect ashfall. Hawaii County Civil Defense said a dusting of ash was visible on property and advised residents to avoid exposure to the powdered rock, which can cause irritation to eyes and airways.

There was no effect on air carrier operations to Hawaii on Wednesday, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said in an email.

Ash is a new hazard for Hawaii’s Big Island, already grappling with volcanic gas and lava that has destroyed 37 homes and other structures and forced the evacuation of about 2,000 residents from a small area in the southeast Puna district.

Lava has burst from 21 giant ground cracks or fissures and torn through housing developments and farmland, threatening two highways that are exit routes for coastal areas.

Several fissures shot lava into the air on Wednesday but one flow advanced only 100 yards (meters) toward coastal Highway 137, which remains around a mile (1.6 km) distant, County of Hawaii Civil Defense said in a statement.

No serious injuries or deaths have been reported from the eruption.

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester; Additional reporting and writing by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Tom Brown and Sandra Maler)

Lava threatens Hawaii exit routes, could spur more evacuations

A view of Fissure 17, is seen looking southward from Hwy 132, in Hawaii, U.S. May 13, 2018. Picture taken on May 13, 2018. USGS/Handout via REUTERS

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – Lava flowing from giant rips in the earth on the flank of Hawaii’s erupting Kilauea volcano threatened highways on Monday, raising the possibility officials may order thousands more people to evacuate before escape routes are cut off.

Lava from a huge new fissure tore through farmland towards a coastal dirt road that is one of the last exit routes for some 2,000 residents in the southeast area of Hawaii’s Big Island.

More lava-belching cracks are expected to open among homes and countryside some 25 miles (40 km) east of Kilauea’s smoking summit, possibly blocking one of the last exit routes, Highway 132.

Fountains of magma spouted “lava bombs” more than 100 feet (30 meters) into the air as the molten rock traveled east-southeast towards the coastal road – Highway 137 – the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said.

Volcanic gases rise from a fissure near the remains of a structure in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Volcanic gases rise from a fissure near the remains of a structure in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Mass evacuations would be triggered if either highway is hit by lava, said Hawaii National Guard spokesman Jeff Hickman.

“There’s a lot of worst-case scenarios and roads getting blocked is one of them,” said Hickman, standing on Highway 137, in the potential path of the lava flow, some two miles (3 km) away.

ERUPTIONS COULD LAST WEEKS

Dozens of homes have been destroyed since eruptions began 10 days ago and officials have ordered the evacuations of nearly 2,000 residents in the lower Puna district of the Big Island, home to around 187,000 people.

The American Red Cross said 500 people sought refuge in its shelters on Sunday night because of worsening volcanic activity.

Two more fissures opened in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 19.

“It’s optimistic to think that this is the last fissure we’re going to see,” said Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Deputy Scientist-In-Charge Steve Brantley. A similar seismic event in 1955 lasted 88 days, he said.

Unnerved by near-constant small earthquakes and emissions of toxic sulfur dioxide gas, Rob Guzman and his husband Bob Kirk left their home in Kalapana Seaview Estates while they still could.

“We just need the local government to calm down the panic that some of these 2,000 people are feeling, that today, we’re going to be trapped with no way out,” said Guzman, who left behind a banana farm and rental properties to go stay with friends.

Cracks are visible along a road in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Cracks are visible along a road in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

The Hawaii Fire Department issued a “condition red” alert on Monday because fissures in the southeast area of the Lanipuna Gardens area were issuing high levels of sulfur dioxide.

“Condition RED means immediate danger to health so take action to limit further exposure. Severe conditions may exist such as choking and inability to breathe,” the department said in the alert.

While residents deal with noxious gas and lava on the ground, the U.S. Geological Survey is concerned that pent-up steam could cause a violent explosive eruption at the volcano crater, launching a 20,000-foot (6,100-meter) plume that could spread debris over 12 miles (19 km).

Scientists had expected such explosions by the middle of this month as Kilauea’s lava lake fell below the water table. The possibility exists, however, that water may not be entering the crater, as feared, and gas and steam may be safely venting, scientists said.

“So far those explosions have not occurred and I think the key here is that the vent system is an open one, therefore pressure is not being built or developed down at the top of the lava column,” Brantley told a conference call.

(Graphic – Scorched earth: https://tmsnrt.rs/2jIJ5lG)

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester in Pahoa and Jolyn Rosa in Honolulu; Additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Writing by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Bill Tarrant, Sandra Maler and Paul Tait)

Huge fissures open on Hawaiian volcano, some defy evacuation order

Lava erupts from a fissure east of the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – Two new fissures opened on Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano, hurling bursts of rock and magma with an ear-piercing screech on Sunday, threatening nearby homes and prompting authorities to order new evacuations.

Lava erupts from a fissure east of the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Lava erupts from a fissure east of the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

One new fissure from Sunday morning was a vivid gouge of magma with smoke pouring out both ends and was the 17th to open on the volcano since it began erupting on May 3. Some 37 buildings have been destroyed and nearly 2,000 people ordered to evacuate in the past 10 days.

Viewed from a helicopter, the crack appeared to be about 1,000 feet (300 meters) long and among the largest of those fracturing the side of Kilauea, a 4,000-foot-high (1,200-meters) volcano with a lake of lava at its summit.

“It is a near-constant roar akin to a full-throttle 747 interspersed with deafening, earth-shattering explosions that hurtle 100-pound (45-kg) lava bombs 100 feet (30 meters) into the air,” said Mark Clawson, 64, who lives uphill from the latest fissure and so far is defying an evacuation order.

Closer to the summit, in the evacuated Leilani Estates neighborhood of about 1,500 people, explosions could be heard in the distance as steam rose from cracks in the roads. The bulging rim of one fissure wrecked a building, leaving behind torn metal.

An 18th fissure opened nearby on Sunday evening at about 6 p.m. local time, spewing fumes and lava, officials said.

In areas where sulfur dioxide emissions were strong, the vegetation turned brown and leafless trees withered.

Volcanic gases rise from the ground in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Volcanic gases rise from the ground in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

The U.S. Geological Survey warned that fissures could erupt throughout the area, and Civil Defense officials on Sunday ordered people living on Halekamahina Road to evacuate and be on the alert for gas emissions and lava spatter.

Meanwhile, other fissures continued to billow smoke over homes on the eastern point of the Big Island of Hawaii, the largest of the Hawaiian islands.

Even so, some people such as Clawson remained in their homes, confident they would be spared.

“We are keeping track of lava bombs. One went through the lanai (porch) roof of a neighbor’s house,” Clawson said. About eight to 10 neighbors had yet to evacuate, he said.

The Hawaii National Guard is warning people in the coastal Lower Puna area to prepare to leave, saying anyone who chooses to stay behind cannot count on being rescued. An evacuation has not been ordered there but might be if a local highway is cut off.

Volcanic gasses rise from the ground in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Volcanic gasses rise from the ground in the Leilani Estates subdivision during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii, U.S., May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

“We’ve been telling them, ‘Evacuate if you can, because if we have to come in and get you we’ll be putting first responders at risk’,” Major Jeff Hickman told reporters. “There’s a point where we’ll tell our first responders, ‘Nope, you can’t go’.”

 

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester in Pahoa and Jolyn Rosa in Honolulu; additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Writing by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Paul Simao, Daniel Wallis and Paul Tait)

Toxic gas alert for Hawaii volcano eruption; new areas at risk

Deposits are seen on a road in Puna, Hawaii. Apau Hawaii Tours/via REUTERS

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – Residents on the Big Island of Hawaii were alerted on Thursday to rising levels of toxic gas from lava-oozing fissures, and geologists warned that new areas east of the erupting Kilauea volcano may be at risk of molten rock bursting from the ground.

Hawaii County authorities sent a text message to residents of the southeast corner of the island warning them of a wind change that would bring rising levels of sulfur dioxide gas, which can be fatal if inhaled in large quantities.

“It’s just horrible. You can’t breathe in there,” said evacuated resident Robynn Stagg, 58, who drove through the thick, orange sulfur dioxide haze earlier this week in a failed attempt to check on her home.

Hawaii’s governor has warned that mass evacuations may be required as more fissures open in the ground and spew lava and gas into semi-rural residential areas on the east flank of Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes.

During an evening meeting with community members, an official with the United States Geological Survey’s Hawaii Volcano Observatory said that while no new fissures have opened during the last 24 hours, there has been “quite a bit” of ground cracking over the last day and that they were releasing steam.

“Because the lava intrusion is still active and earthquakes are still occurring, we still think there’s a decent chance of new eruptive activity at the surface,” Steven Brantley said.

Authorities on Thursday completed the removal of highly flammable chemicals from a nearby geothermal power plant that was in the path of creeping lava.

The latest upheaval at Kilauea began last week after the crater floor of a long-active side vent collapsed suddenly in a cloud of ash, triggering a similar plunge in the molten lake inside the larger crater at the volcano’s summit.

What followed was a flurry of earthquakes as huge volumes of magma — the term for lava beneath the surface — drained back through deep-underground passages that carried the molten rock far downslope. The lava then forced its way back to the surface through large cracks, or fissures, that opened at ground level in a residential area miles (km) a

‘BALLISTIC BLOCKS’

Geologists said Kilauea may be entering a new phase of explosive eruptions not seen in nearly a century that could hurl “ballistic blocks” weighing up to 12 tons for half a mile (800 meters), and rain pebble-sized fragments for another mile or two (1.8 to 3.2 km).

However, the immediate vicinity around the summit, an area controlled by the National Park Service, was to be closed to visitors indefinitely, starting on Thursday night.

Such blasts would likely also eject plumes of volcanic ash that could be carried farther downwind into neighboring communities, creating a nuisance and potential respiratory irritant, but not a life-threatening hazard, officials said.

The Leilani Estates community remains in greatest danger, with 15 volcanic fissures so far having destroyed 36 structures, most of them homes, and forcing the evacuation of about 2,000 residents.

But as the eruption progresses, “other areas of the lower East Rift Zone may also be at risk,” the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said in a bulletin.

“There is the potential for additional outbreaks,” Christina Neal, the chief scientist at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory at Kilauea told a news briefing. “There are other communities, other residential neighborhoods that could, depending on the evolution of activity, be in harm’s way.”

Hawaii Governor David Ige has requested federal disaster assistance as he said a mass evacuation of the lower Puna District, where Leilani Estates is located, would be beyond current county and state capabilities.

Hawaii police said they arrested Alexandru Stingu-Dragomir, 29, on suspicion he burgled four houses in Leilani Estates after the mayor declared an emergency the area on last week.

SURFING IN THE VOG

Local meteorologists said the change in prevailing winds could send Kilauea’s volcanic smog, or vog, northwest to Maui and other islands in Hawaii.

Surfers bobbing in the ocean off Kona on the west side of the Big Island complained of the smog that could be seen in a haze over the coast.

“Does that hat protect against vog?” one surfer was heard quipping to another about the floppy sun hat he was wearing.

In Pahoa, the nearest village to Kilauea, some schools remained closed after the area was hit by a 6.9 magnitude earthquake on Friday, the biggest since 1975.

The closures have added to a sense of disarray and ramped up stress levels, said gallery owner Amedeo Markoff, 49.

“It’s like our version of a snow day — a lava day,” joked Markoff.

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester and Jolyn Rosa; Writing and additional reporting by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; Editing by Bill Tarrant and Sandra Maler)

Indonesia evacuates residents, shuts airport after Java volcano erupts

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian authorities ordered people living near a volcano to leave their homes on Friday and a major city closed its airport after the 5,500 meter (18,000 ft) peak sent a column of steam and ash into the sky.

The Mount Merapi volcano on densely populated Java island is one of the most active in Indonesia and a series of eruptions in 2010 killed more than 350 people.

A disaster mitigation agency told residents living within a 5 km (3 mile) radius of the mountain to move to shelters, agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said in a statement.

He said that 120 people who had been hiking up Merapi were safe.

The airport in Yogyakarta, the nearest big city to the volcano, shut because of the threat from the ash, the state-owned aviation agency AirNav said in a statement.

The disaster agency described Merapi’s latest eruption as phreatic, which means magma heats up ground water and vapor is released under pressure.

The alert status on Merapi had not be raised, it said.

(Reporting by Jessica Damiana; Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Hawaii volcano threatens power plant; mass evacuations possible

Lava advances towards a metal barrier in Puna, May 6, 2018. WXCHASING via REUTERS

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – Hawaii authorities scrambled to move tens of thousands of gallons of highly flammable chemicals from the path of lava on Thursday, and the state’s governor warned mass evacuations might be needed as the Kilauea volcano’s eruption became more violent.

After a new fissure opened on Wednesday about half a mile from a geothermal power plant, Hawaii Governor David Ige set up an emergency task force to remove the pentane used in the plant’s turbines. He cited estimates that if the fluid ignites, the resulting explosion could create a blast radius of up to one mile. (1.6 km)

The Puna Geothermal Venture plant sits at the edge of the Leilani Estates residential area on Hawaii’s Big Island where lava from 15 volcanic fissures has so far destroyed 36 structures, most of them homes, and forced the evacuation of around 2,000 residents.

“As more fissures open and toxic gas exposure increases, the potential of a larger scale evacuation increases,” Ige said in a tweet on Wednesday evening.

“A mass evacuation of the lower Puna District would be beyond current county and state capabilities, and would quickly overwhelm our collective resources,” Ige tweeted, saying in a separate post that he signed a request for federal disaster assistance.

The lower part of the Puna District, of which Leilani Gardens is a part, covers dozens of square miles and is home to many thousands of residents. It has the highest possible hazard risks for lava flows, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Exposure to very high levels of the sulfur dioxide gas emitted from the fissures can be life-threatening, experts say.

Geologists warned on Wednesday that Kilauea may be entering a more violent phase of explosive eruptions, the likes of which Hawaii has not seen in nearly a century.

Steam-driven explosive eruptions could hurl “ballistic blocks” weighing several tons upwards of half a mile and dust towns as far away as Hilo, some 25 miles (40 km) distant, with volcanic ash and smog.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, where Kilauea is located, said on Wednesday it would close most of the park on Friday due to the threat of a possible explosive eruption.

Magma is draining out of the volcano’s sinking lava pool and flowing underground tens of miles eastward before bursting to the surface on Kilauea’s eastern flank in the lower Puna area.

“There’s still quite a fair bit of magma under the ground that’s available to erupt,” Tina Neal, the scientist in charge of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said in a conference call, adding that she saw no end to activity in the east rift zone.

Kilauea has been in a state of nearly constant eruption for 35 years. It predominantly oozes out lava from fissures that flows into the ocean but occasionally experiences more explosive eruptions, such as an event in 1924.

 

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester, writing and additional reporting by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; Editing by David Gregorio)

Fissures spread from Hawaii volcano, threatening more homes

Lava is seen from a fissure appearing behind a resident's backyard in Puna, Hawaii, U.S. in this still frame taken from May 6, 2018 video obtained from social media. KEITH BROCK/Social Media via REUTERS

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – 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.

 

Lava engulfs a Ford Mustang in Puna, Hawaii, U.S., May 6, 2018 in this still image obtained from social media video. WXCHASING via REUTERS

Lava engulfs a Ford Mustang in Puna, Hawaii, U.S., May 6, 2018 in this still image obtained from social media video. WXCHASING via REUTERS

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 12 miles (19 km) from the volcano, was evacuated due to the risk of sulfur dioxide gas, which can be life threatening at high levels.

Puna district residents attend a community meeting during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano at Pahoa High and Intermediate School in Pahoa, Hawaii, U.S., May 7, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

Puna district residents attend a community meeting during ongoing eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano at Pahoa High and Intermediate School in Pahoa, Hawaii, U.S., May 7, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

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.

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

‘Go now’, Hawaii residents warned as eruptions spread

Lava advances along a street near a fissure in Leilani Estates, on Kilauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone, Hawaii, the U.S., May 5, 2018. U.S. Geological Survey/Handout via REUTERS

By Terray Sylvester

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) – Emergency authorities battling lava flows and gas erupting from Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano told some residents to “Go now” as a new fissure opened and more structures were destroyed.

Kilauea has destroyed 26 homes and forced 1,700 people to leave their residences since it erupted on Thursday, spewing lava and toxic gas from volcanic vents in a small area of Hawaii’s Big Island.

A new fissure spraying lava fountains as high as about 230 feet (70 m), according to United States Geological Survey, is shown from Luana Street in Leilani Estates subdivision on Kilauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone in Hawaii, U.S., May 5, 2018. US Geological Survey/Handout via REUTERS

A new fissure spraying lava fountains as high as about 230 feet (70 m), according to United States Geological Survey, is shown from Luana Street in Leilani Estates subdivision on Kilauea Volcano’s lower East Rift Zone in Hawaii, U.S., May 5, 2018. US Geological Survey/Handout via REUTERS

A new fissure opened on Sunday night in the Leilani Estates area some 12 miles from the volcano, prompting a cellphone alert for residents to leave homes to avoid sulfur dioxide gas, which can be life threatening at high levels.So far no fatalities or major injuries have been reported from the volcano, according to the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency.

Evacuees from Leilani Estates were allowed to return for pets, medications and to check property on Sunday, but some like Jeremy Wilson found homes surrounded by fissures that can be hundreds of feet long.

“My house is right in the middle,” said Wilson, who turned back in his car when he saw steam coming from cracks in the road ahead.

The semi-rural wooded area of Leilani Estates had become a magnet for newcomers to Hawaii’s Big Island who were prepared to risk living near to an active volcano in return for more affordable real-estate prices.

Eruptions of lava and gas were expected to continue, along with aftershocks from Friday’s 6.9 magnitude earthquake, the largest in the area since 1975, according to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. A lava flow advanced 0.6 of a mile from one of the vents.

Lava emerges from the ground after Kilauea Volcano erupted, on Hawaii's Big Island May 3, 2018, in this still image taken from video obtained from social media. Jeremiah Osuna/via REUTERS

Lava emerges from the ground after Kilauea Volcano erupted, on Hawaii’s Big Island May 3, 2018, in this still image taken from video obtained from social media. Jeremiah Osuna/via REUTERS

Geologists said the activity looked like an event in 1955 when eruptions continued for 88 days in the area and covered around 4,000 acres with lava.

Jessica Gauthier, 47, said she and other local realtors had seen vacation renters cancel their reservations, even though the volcanic activity is confined to a relatively isolated area far from tourist centers.

“There’s no way to know that if you’re sitting in your living room in Ohio and watching the national news,” she said.

Gauthier predicted business would pick up as a new kind of visitor began to appear.

 

County workers deliver cots and blankets to an evacuation center in Pahoa available to residents of the Puna communities of Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens who were forced to leave their homes after the Kilauea Volcano erupted on Thursday in Hawaii, U.S., May 4, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

County workers deliver cots and blankets to an evacuation center in Pahoa available to residents of the Puna communities of Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens who were forced to leave their homes after the Kilauea Volcano erupted on Thursday in Hawaii, U.S., May 4, 2018. REUTERS/Terray Sylvester

“Within a month we’ll start getting lava tourists,” she said of people who come to Hawaii to see its active volcanoes.

Hawaii County authorities requested lava watchers keep away.

“This is not the time for sightseeing. You can help tremendously by staying out of the area,” the civil defense agency said in a statement.

(Reporting by Terray Sylvester; Writing by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Toby Chopra)

Unusual eruptions at world’s largest active geyser in Yellowstone

FILE PHOTO: The Steamboat Geyser erupts in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, June 21, 2011. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart/File Photo

By Jon Herskovitz

(Reuters) – The world’s largest active geyser has erupted three times in the past six weeks at Yellowstone National Park, including once this week, in a pattern that is unusual but not at all indicative of a more destructive volcanic eruption brewing beneath Wyoming, geologists said on Saturday.

Steamboat Geyser, which can shoot water as high as 300 feet (91 meters) into the air, erupted on March 15, April 19 and on Friday. The last time it erupted three times in a year was in 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Yellowstone Volcano Observatory said.

The last time it erupted prior to March was more than three years ago in September 2014.

“There is nothing to indicate that any sort of volcanic eruption is imminent,” Michael Poland, the scientist in charge for the observatory, said in an email.

This year’s eruptions have been smaller than a usual Steamboat eruption, but the two in April were about 10 times larger than an eruption at the park’s famed Old Faithful Geyser in terms on the amount of water discharged, he said.

Geologists have not pinpointed a reason for the latest series of eruptions, but say they could indicate a thermal disturbance in the geyser basin, or that Steamboat may be having smaller eruptions instead of one large.

Since most geysers do not erupt on a regular schedule, “it might just reflect the randomness of geysers,” Poland said.

Only Waimangu Geyser in New Zealand has rocketed to greater heights than Steamboat, but not for more than 100 years, the U.S. National Park Service said.

Yellowstone sits atop a volcano that created a vast crater. Its plateau hosts the world’s most diverse and expansive continental hydrothermal systems, including the multicolored springs, mudpots and geysers for which the park is known.

While the Steamboat eruptions are unusual, what would be far more worrying would be the water in the hydrothermal systems drying up, which could indicate that the super hot magma deep below was making its way to the surface.

“Yellowstone hasn’t had a volcanic eruption for 70,000 years! Geysers erupt all the time,” said Jake Lowenstern, a USGS research geologist who specializes in volcanoes.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Daniel Wallis and XX)