More people on Hawaii’s Big Island have been evacuated as a new fissure in Hawaii’s Puna District sent gases and lava exploding into the air, as on-edge residents brace for a potential major eruption at Kilauea volcano’s summit.
About 1,700 people have been barred from their homes for 10 days as the Kilauea volcano pours lava through a rural neighborhood about 35 miles from Hilo, the island’s largest city.
“A lot of people are scared,” said Tiana Dunn, who helped organize a community supply depot for evacuees in Pahoa. “People are still a bit sad and in disbelief.”
Scientists have identified 18 lava outbreaks in the Leilani Estates neighborhood since this latest episode of activity began on May 3 and closed the area to the public.
At least 36 structures have been destroyed by lava flows, including 26 homes, and the poisonous gases are killing off trees and grasses left untouched by the lava.