Hawaii officials warn of possible lava evacuation

As reported in 'The Japan News' : The Associated Press This Wednesday photo provided by the United States Geological Survey shows the front of a lava flow with numerous smoke plumes arising from active breakouts burning vegetation at the flow margin, near the town of Pahoa on the Big Island of Hawaii.

The Associated Press, HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii authorities on Saturday told several dozen residents near an active lava flow to prepare for a possible evacuation in the next three to five days as molten rock oozed across a country road and edged closer to homes. The flow is currently about 50 meters to 70 meters wide and moving northeast at about nine meters per hour. The lava crossed a road on the edge of Pahoa, the largest town in the mostly rural region of Puna on the Big Island of Hawaii, at 3:50 a.m. It’s currently about six-tenths of one kilometer from Pahoa Village Road, the town’s main street. It’s not clear when it might reach the village road as the flow has been advancing erratically, said Matt Patrick, a geologist with the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. Officials were going door-to-door to about 50 homes to keep residents informed of the lava’s movement, said Darryl Oliveira, the director of civil defense for Hawaii County. “This is all something we’ve been preparing for and hoping wouldn’t have to happen,” Oliveira said. 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, Oliveira said. 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.Speech