Big Island of Hawaii Rattled by Kilauea Eruption

Andrew Donaldson

Born and raised in West Virginia, Andrew has been the Managing Editor of Ordinary Times since 2018, is a widely published opinion writer, and appears in media, radio, and occasionally as a talking head on TV. He can usually be found misspelling/misusing words on Twitter@four4thefire. Andrew is the host of Heard Tell podcast. Subscribe to Andrew'sHeard Tell Substack for free here:

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4 Responses

  1. Kolohe says:

    The saving grace on these is that they are never like Mt St Helens (or Vesuvius) eruptions. Everything just oozes out at a walking pace.Report

  2. Marchmaine says:

    We were in Hawaii last week and a couple friends of ours extended their stay to go to the big island through today. Will have to check with them to see if the earthquakes and eruptions were a bonus or terrifying or meh.Report

    • Kolohe in reply to Marchmaine says:

      The flow has shifted around every few years. Back in the 80s (I think) you used to be able to drive up to the flow, then it shifted and covered the road and then (by the late 90s, first time I visited) shifted again so it was about a 3 mile trek over fresh basalt with no shade (or alternatively, no light). I think after that the main crater partially collapsed, and a few years after that, the eruption point shifted to a place outside the national park (but on state reserve wilderness area). I believe this is the first eruption of Kilauea proper since then.

      I doubt the earthquakes were a big deal, though a few years ago a substantial one hit Oahu and knocked out the electricity grid for a couple of days, maybe a week.Report

  3. Kolohe says:

    USGS twitter looks to be a great source for updates and context. this has the latest map. It seems to me that there are eruptions where there’s never been any before (in living memory) and that’s why such a large area of (relatively) populated parts of the island are under threat.Report