Kilauea

[FireBirdDS]

How many of you have been following the unfolding volcanic drama coming out of Hawaii?
22 fissure eruptions and counting, no signs of it slowing down anytime soon, with fears of main residential arteries being cut off with little or no warning. Many forced to evacuate with only the clothes on their backs and the contents of their pockets. 40+ structures toasted so far. My understanding is that very few (if any) of these homeowners policies will cover volcanic events, as these structures are built directly over Kilauea's east RIFT ZONE and were already deemed at a high risk from fissure eruptions. One wonders what made these people decide to build on the flanks of the "world's most active volcano".

 

[223 Gunner]

I wondered the same thing.
It last erupted in 1983, still that is too soon for me, I had seen the same thing on the news about the insurance companies not covering homes built near it.
Now these people are completely homeless with nothing, and no hopes of getting paid.
I am assuming these people must have paid for the homes in full when purchased. Most lenders will not loan on uninsured property.

 

[Trigger Time]

Any chance this could pop up In downtown Los Angeles and sink California? Asking for a friend

 

[actaeon277]

Who would insure someone for volcanic activity, living on an active volcano, on an island formed... from volcanic activity.

 

[indykid]

Most of Kilauea activity has had lave flows going mostly south. The homes in the current east flow area were built when they thought Pele would be kind and continue lava flowing southerly. Pele must be very angry.

 

[Dead Duck]

Kilauea is the closest active volcano in that area and has quite a few documented "vents" all over there. The only change is that we now have internet that lets everyone see it as it's happening. It's been finding vents to spew out forever.
Doesn't really matter where you think it's safe because it will just find another tube to open up and surprise you. Tubes are formed from gas bubbles from previous flows. Catacombs of volcano tubes are all over the islands. Horizontals and verticals.
When the flow hits a dead end tube, it will build pressure and sometimes come out through the top of the horizontal tube in mutable places along the tube and they are calling those fissures. That's when you see an elongated flow coming out all at the same time.

An eruption is always an earthquake away of changing everything. USGS has some cool maps of all the activity and dated lava flows of all the islands there since history has been keeping track. It just flows downhill wherever happens to comes out.

The real locals embrace it because its part of living there but the uptight haoles are usually the ones complaining.

Or you could just say that Madame Pele is a *****! (I wouldn't say that while standing on the islands)

https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/multimedia_maps.html

 

[eldirector]

Step one in Disaster Preparedness: don't live on top of an active volcano (unless you are a super villain with unlimited resources).

Step 2: If you DO live on an active volcano, there is no excuse to leave with only the clothes on your back, and lint in your pocket. Eruptions are not exactly a surprise. They aren't sneaky. Have a plan.

Step 3: If Emergency Management says "hey, it is going to erupt. You should leave", the correct answer is "well, get out of my way, then". I saw that folks were refusing to leave, and then had to be "rescued" (abducted). Takes a special kind of obstinate to butt heads with a volcano.

But, that is just me.

 

[Spear Dane]

What I want to know is will it actually do a volcano explosion thingy or is it just going to **** all over itself forever? There is only so much entertainment value in lava flows.

 

[churchmouse]

Step one in Disaster Preparedness: don't live on top of an active volcano (unless you are a super villain with unlimited resources).

Step 2: If you DO live on an active volcano, there is no excuse to leave with only the clothes on your back, and lint in your pocket. Eruptions are not exactly a surprise. They aren't sneaky. Have a plan.

Step 3: If Emergency Management says "hey, it is going to erupt. You should leave", the correct answer is "well, get out of my way, then". I saw that folks were refusing to leave, and then had to be "rescued" (abducted). Takes a special kind of obstinate to butt heads with a volcano.

But, that is just me.

This list pretty well covers it.

 

[Leadeye]

What I want to know is will it actually do a volcano explosion thingy or is it just going to **** all over itself forever? There is only so much entertainment value in lava flows.

It's a different sort of volcano, I remember from geology classes in school that even the lava is different, lower viscosity. These types erupt more but less violently than say St. Helens.

 

[eric001]

The only "fireworks" that might actually be violent are from when groundwater and magma get together underground. When exposed to air and depressurized, steam eruptions blowing lava into ash and bigger chunks that fly around--lava bombs--can get pretty nasty. Other than that, it comes back to watching lava fountain and flow.

And as for why people would live on an active volcano...what about the millions that live in SoCal in one of the world's most active fault zones when it's been widely known, hopefully actually taught in Cali schools, for the last 20-30 years or so, that the San Andreas is overdue for another "big one" that is projected to cause catastrophic amounts of damage to all those structures that people have been building right on top of the fault area for the same time frame??

People tend to completely ignore facts they don't like if it means they can blissfully keep doing whatever they want to keep doing...and then they are horrified when the ground opens up or the buildings come tumbling down, and of course want someone ELSE to pay for them to rebuild in the same danger area to have it happen all over again at some point in the future.

 

[actaeon277]

If the lava is "oozing out", then pressure is being relieved.

If the lava stops, then it's either done, or LOOK OUT!

The scary ones are when they don't ooze first. Pressure builds up, then BLAM.

 

[actaeon277]

Step one in Disaster Preparedness: don't live on top of an active volcano (unless you are a super villain with unlimited resources).

Step 2: If you DO live on an active volcano, there is no excuse to leave with only the clothes on your back, and lint in your pocket. Eruptions are not exactly a surprise. They aren't sneaky. Have a plan.

Step 3: If Emergency Management says "hey, it is going to erupt. You should leave", the correct answer is "well, get out of my way, then". I saw that folks were refusing to leave, and then had to be "rescued" (abducted). Takes a special kind of obstinate to butt heads with a volcano.

But, that is just me.

Yup.
But.. people aren't prepared, because they EXPECT to get rescued. That, or they think because things are okay today, then they will be okay tomorrow.

 

[indykid]

Yup.
But.. people aren't prepared, because they EXPECT to get rescued. That, or they think because things are okay today, then they will be okay tomorrow.

Hawaii officials don't screw around. They told residents of the area that if they were given the order to evacuate and didn't, that they should not expect to be rescued if things got bad. Local officials were not going to risk the lives of rescue people. I found that refreshingly interesting.

And color me silly because one of the areas of The Big Island that I was looking at homes to retire in was Hawaiian Acres and Fern Acres just north of the new rift zone. Glad I changed my mind when I read their firearm laws!

 

[Drail]

There was a story a few days ago about a helo pilot having to go in and land to rescue 4 people trapped in the middle of the lava flows. I would love to hear his opinion of those dumb people who refused to evacuate.

 

[FireBirdDS]

 

[T.Lex]

That big complex to the right of those pictures is a geothermal plant. Mile-deep wells drilled.

That'll get sporty.

I find this kind of stuff fascinating.

From several thousand miles away.