May 3, 2018 Pele Erupts in Leilani
After all the lava drained out of the Pu’u ‘O’o Vent (the main vent of the 35 year long current eruption) last Monday, the contents moved down the East rift zone, causing hundreds of earthquakes as far away as Kapoho, some 15 miles. All week, a new eruption had been forecast… cracks appeared on roadways, as the earth began to swell. And then, on Thursday afternoon, Pele (the Volcano Goddess) made her appearance in the lower part of Leilani Estates Subdivision. At first, fountains of lava shot up into the air… but within a few hours, she had settled down into a lava flow that now threatens dozens of nearby homes, and a geothermal power plant just a quarter mile downslope. The flow has slowed way down for the time being… but will most likely re-activate… or pop out again somewhere else.
Mahalo to Paradise Helicopters and Bruce Omori at Extreme Exposure