The Kilauea volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island has erupted for the second time in two and a half years.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)reported the news of the eruptionlate Sunday night, tweeting that it had taken place around 9:30 p.m. local time and, about an hour later, reportinga “magnitude-4.4 earthquakeon Kīlauea Volcano’s south flank.”
“The Hawaiian Volcano Observatoryreports an eruptionat the Halemaumau Crater of the Kilauea Volcano,” the County of Hawaii Civil Defense tweeted on Monday morning. “Trade winds will push any embedded ash toward the Southwest.”
“Fallout is likely in the Kau District in Wood Valley, Pahala, Naalehu and Ocean View,” the tweet continued. “Stay indoors to avoid [exposure].”
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Kilauea volcano eruption.AP/Shutterstock
The USGS have shared several photosand videos of the eruptionto their Twitter feed since it commenced hours ago, including a snapshot that showed “lava being cascaded into the summit water lake, boiling off the water and forming a new lava lake.”
“The northern fissure, pictured,was producing the tallest lava fountainat roughly 50 m (165 ft), and all lava was contained within Halema’uma’u crater in Kīlauea caldera,” they continued.
In reply to one user who asked, “Whenwas the last eruptioninside the main crater?”, the USGS responded, “There was an active lava lake within the crater during 2008-2018. It drained in response to the large lower East Rift Zone eruption in 2018. Thelast time there was an eruptionlike this one, with summit fissures, might have been 1982.”
On top of the 4.4-magnitude earthquake, theUSGS reportedthat several smaller earthquakes (with at least seven ranging from 2.5 to 2.7 magnitude) have occurred over the past few hours.
Kilauea volcano eruption.HVO/USGS HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
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The latest eruption comes just over two and a half years after Kilauea last erupted. The 2018 incident came as hundreds of earthquakes rattled the area for days, with magnitudes measuring 5.0 or higher, according to theAssociated Press. The quakes were triggered after the Puu Oo crater floor began to collapse.
“The fissures are deadly, very deadly. We’re currently in a condition red because of the increased ash in the area,” Alan Richmond, spokesman for the Hawaii Police Department, told PEOPLE in May 2018. “We’ve had no injuries which is the good news.”
As of May 16 2018, over 1,500 Hawaii residents were ordered to evacuate their homes after the volcano’s eruption that month. The resulting lava flowed over a span of four months, destroying more than 700 homes.
source: people.com
