It's about that time:
Slithering lava sends Hawaii residents from homes
"Hawaii volcano lava prompts evacuation concerns" Associated Press October 27, 2014
HONOLULU — Dozens of residents in a rural area of Hawaii have been placed on alert as flowing lava from an erupting volcano advances.
Authorities on Sunday said lava flow in Pahoa on the Big Island of Hawaii had advanced about 250 yards since Saturday morning. The flow front had entered a cemetery and was about a half-mile from Pahoa Village Road, the town’s main street.
Residents in the Kilauea volcano flow path, in the mostly rural region of Puna, were told to complete all necessary preparations by Tuesday for a possible evacuation.
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says the future advance rate is likely to continue fluctuating, making it difficult to forecast arrival times.
Officials were going door to door to about 50 homes in Pahoa to keep residents informed of the lava’s movement. The lava flow now threatening Pahoa, the largest town in Puna district, began in June.
The county will issue a mandatory evacuation order if the flow begins advancing at such a rate that it would be difficult for people to move out of the way with little notice, said Darryl Oliveira, the director of civil defense for Hawaii County. The presence of hazardous materials — like a pile of tires or a stockpile of chemicals — in the flow’s path would also trigger a mandatory evacuation order, he said.
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"River of lava crackles, creeps toward Hawaii town" by Audrey McAvoy and Jennifer Sinco Kelliher | Associated Press October 29, 2014
PAHOA, Hawaii — After weeks of slow, stop-and-go movement, a river of asphalt-black lava destroyed a wooden shed Tuesday as it crept closer to homes in a Big Island community.
The lava flow easily burned down the empty shed at about 7:30 a.m., several hours after entering a residential property in Pahoa Village, said Hawaii County Civil Defense Director Darryl Oliveira.
A branch of the molten stream was less than the length of a football field from a two-story house.
Residents of the small town have had weeks to prepare for what’s been described as a slow-motion disaster. Most have either already left or are prepared to go. At least 50 or 60 structures — including homes and businesses — are in the area likely to be hit.
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Kilauea volcano, one of the world’s most active, has been erupting continuously since 1983.
County officials are making arrangements for those living in the lava’s path to be able to watch the lava destroy their homes as a means of closure.
‘‘You can only imagine the frustration as well as . . . despair they’re going through,’’ Oliveira said.
Hunt watched last week as the lava crept toward Pahoa and saw a woman whose house is near its path put a ti leaf lei at the front of the flow.
‘‘It helps a person come to grips with the reality of the situation,’’ he said. ‘‘I found it to be oddly comforting in a really strange way.’’
Sporadic suspensions in the lava’s movement have given emergency crews time to build alternate routes to town.
Raras said they began putting their belongings in storage in September.
An elementary school projected to be in the lava’s path, will close starting Wednesday. Other schools will start closing Thursday.
Downtown Pahoa chiropractor Roy Lozano’s business isn’t in the lava’s projected path but he can see its glow in the evening.
Even though the flow is about 2,000 feet away, he hasn’t been able to smell the smoke. ‘‘We’ve been very lucky in the way the wind’s been blowing.’’
Terri Mulroy, who runs Kumu Aina Farm with her husband, said the lava flow, while unnerving, has a cleansing quality to it because it keeps development on the lush Hawaiian island in check.
‘‘If it wasn’t for the flow, I wouldn’t be able to live here,’’ she said. ‘‘This land would have been a golf course for the rich.’’
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