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Community => Recreation Commons => Our researchers have made a breakthrough! => Topic started by: Buster's Uncle on September 09, 2014, 03:05:56 am

Title: Hawaii lava flow slows, moves parallel to homes
Post by: Buster's Uncle on September 09, 2014, 03:05:56 am

Hawaii lava flow slows, moves parallel to homes
Associated Press
By AUDREY McAVOY and JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER  3 minutes ago


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In this Sept. 6, 2014 aerial photo provided by the U.S. Geological Survey, lava advances from the Kilauea volcano in Pahoa, Hawaii. Lava issued from several spots along a deep ground crack earlier this week, as shown by the distinct fingers of lava making up the flow front. The thick smoke plumes show the flow front moving downslope towards the north. Lava from one of the world's most active volcanos has been advancing at a slower pace the past few days and is now moving parallel to a sparsely populated subdivision on Hawaii's Big Island. Hawaii County Civil Defense Director Darryl Oliveira says the lava from Kilauea volcano is still at least a mile away from any homes in Kaohe Homesteads. (AP Photo/Tim Orr, U.S. Geological Survey)



PAHOA, Hawaii (AP) — Lava from one of the world's most active volcanos has been advancing at a slower pace the past few days and is now moving parallel to a sparsely populated subdivision on Hawaii's Big Island.

Lava from Kilauea volcano was still at least a mile from any homes in Kaohe Homesteads, said Hawaii County Civil Defense Director Darryl Oliveira.

Oliveira took a helicopter flight over the area Monday and saw the lava had crept about 150 yards from the previous day. It's moving north for now but could still stop or change directions.

"It's been doing that for the last several days," he said of its northern pull. Prior to Friday, it was going northeast toward the subdivision.

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has warned the lava could reach the subdivision in a matter of days.

Oliveira said he didn't anticipate issuing an evacuation order Monday. But residents should be prepared as it's difficult to predict the lava's movement. It was also raining over the flow site, he noted, which meant there wasn't a wildfire threat.


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In this Sept. 6, 2014 photo released by the U.S. Geological Survey, surface flows have recently cut a swath through thick forest 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. Lava from one of the world's most active volcanos has been advancing at a slower pace the past few days and is now moving parallel to a sparsely populated subdivision on Hawaii's Big Island. Hawaii County Civil Defense Director Darryl Oliveira says the lava from Kilauea volcano is still at least a mile away from any homes in Kaohe Homesteads. (AP Photo/U.S. Geological Survey)


"That's good for today," he said. "But it doesn't get us out of any potential threat down the road. It just means it's going to be a very slow process."

The lava warning has created an "edgy" mood in Puna, the rural region on the southeast side of the Big Island that the lava is posing a risk to, said Bill Parecki, a real estate agent who has lived in the area for 42 years. The area is still recovering from damage of a tropical storm about a month ago.

"Everybody's a little concerned," he said. "Everybody's a little worried. We just have to see where the lava goes. There's no control. It's Mother Nature."

A big concern is lava crossing roads and blocking Puna off from the rest of the island, or becoming "lava-locked," he said.

Business has been quiet since Tropical Storm Iselle made landfall over the region last month, said Mary Bicknell, owner of Big Island BookBuyers, a bookstore in downtown Pahoa.

"We're always watching it, but we're not usually threatened by it," she said of the lava.

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Kelleher reported from Honolulu.


http://news.yahoo.com/lava-moving-parallel-homes-now-193419767.html (http://news.yahoo.com/lava-moving-parallel-homes-now-193419767.html)