Lava Heading Our Way!

I fully intended to give a more detailed account of our experience with Hurricane Iselle, downgraded to Tropical Storm status as she moved ashore and wreaked her havoc on our part of the island...

BUT our focus has shifted from that now faraway storm to another natural disaster happening in our Puna district of Hawaii Island (aka the Big Island) - LAVA!

Sure, lava flows almost continuously somewhere on the island, but it's not everyday you get lava aiming right for your town, let alone your home. This is what's happening now. It's flowing just above Pahoa, and if it continues on its current path, will likely flow right close by to our house. Yikes!

This one is called the June 27th Flow because that's when it started. It's been making its way downhill ever since. Folks closer to the flow front are moving themselves and their livestock before the official evacuation order goes out. That's a good idea as it's been quite voggy and smoky as sulphur dioxide is emitted and trees burn up in the flow. The smoke plume is just above Pahoa, lurking there and looking ominous.

If the lava hits the highway--and it will if it keeps flowing--this end of lower Puna will be completely cut off from the rest of the island. There is only one road in or out from here, and no port, only one measly little boat ramp at Pohoiki. Needless to say, this is a BIG DEAL!

There is talk of opening some of the older roads that have been allowed to fall into disrepair - something that should have been done ages ago. Another option is reopening Chain of Craters Road that once connected Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and the little town of Kalapana... before lava overtook the entire area and buried that town 20 feet deep. That was back in 1986-1990, not so long ago. It would sure be a long drive to Hilo that way, but better than nothing.

Maps are being issued every few days and I bet the USGS status update site has never gotten so many hits. There are community Civil Defense meetings held in Pahoa two or three times a week, with larger and larger crowds attending to find out just what is going on and what, if anything, we can do about it. Be prepared comes to mind. Plan for the big What If.

Earth crack at Volcanoes Nat Park.

Fortunately, lava moves fairly slowly on this side of the island due to terrain and topography. It's a long gentle slope to the sea, chopped up with giant earth cracks and jumbled with hard lava from previous flows. Pu'u O'o, the source of all this lava, tends to ooze rather than explode all at once like Mount St Helens did. This gives us plenty of time to see exactly where Madame Pele will wander this time and just who she'll choose to visit. This is her island after all.

It's all part of living on the side of a volcano, and after all, it's how these Hawaii Islands were formed. We knew that coming in... in theory. Now for the real life application, the hands-on experience. Maybe... or maybe not. We're in wait and see mode.