The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park closes today until further notice. There are growing concerns that an explosive event could occur at Halemaumau Crater.
About a week ago, Kilauea began a new eruptive phase along its East Rift Zone. Since then, at least 15 fissures have appeared in the lower Puna neighborhood of Leilani Estates. And, thus far, Madam Pele has claimed over 30 homes in the process. But what happens at one end of the volcano affects the other, which is why there’s growing concern over safety at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
As the eruption continues in lower Puna, it’s causing lava levels in the lake at Halemaumau Crater to drop. And, if the lava levels continue to drop, they will drop below the water table. When this happens, it is predicted that steam will build up in the system and cause a massive explosion. The explosion will not be like a Mount St. Helens event, but it could eject 10 to 12-ton boulders up to half a mile away. And within a several mile radius of the summit, you may experience falls of marble sized rocks, ash, and finer grain material.
Scientists don’t know when such an event will occur, but thin it could happen within the next week. What we do know, though, is something like this did occur in the past. In 1924, a large explosion killed one person near Halemaumau crater and sent an ash column over five miles into the air. Ash fell and caused structural failures as far as 10 miles away during the event as well.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Closes, Final Thoughts
As scary as the current situation sounds, it really isn’t that bad. If you are staying in Waikoloa, Kona, etc. you probably won’t even notice any of these events occurring. Same for the Hilo area of the island. In fact, Hilo itself is a 33-mile, nearly one hour drive away from the volcano. And if you’re visiting any other island, then, well, expect to hear, see, and feel nothing from the volcano. If you’re flying into Hilo when the explosion occurs, though, you could see a slight change in your flight path to avoid the ash cloud, but that’s about it.
So don’t go changing your plans to visit the islands because of this. Yes, it sucks that Hawaii Volcanoes National Park will be unavailable, but it’s for very important safety reasons. Life continues to go on normally in Hawaii unless you’re a resident of lower Puna. And, by the way, if you’d like to assist those affected by the current eruptions, please visit Hawaii News Now for details.