UPDATE - Two homes destroyed in Hawaiian volcano eruption

UPDATE - Two homes destroyed in Hawaiian volcano eruption

Eruption causes state to evacuate 1,800 people on the island of Hawaii

UPDATES WITH EARTHQUAKE STRIKING NEAR VOLCANO

By Barry Eitel

SAN FRANCISCO (AA) – A volcanic eruption in Hawaii has destroyed two homes, state authorities announced Friday.

The eruption spewed molten rock and poisonous gases late Thursday evening and early Friday. Residents living near the Kilauea volcano on the island of Hawaii, also called the “big island” as part of the chain of islands that make up the state of Hawaii, were ordered to evacuate.

The volcano spurted lava through Leilani Estates, a town of roughly 1,700 residents on the island’s eastern coast. In total, about 1,800 people were ordered to evacuate, according to the state government. About 770 structures are in the area.

"Elderly, young, and people with respiratory issues need to comply with the mandatory evacuation order and leave the area," the office of Mayor Harry Kim said in a statement, adding those who refuse to evacuate may not be able to be rescued by first responders.

No injuries have been reported.

Lava was seen spouting out of a fissure roughly 150 meters (500 feet) long.

Governor David Ige signed an emergency proclamation for the island and released disaster relief funds.

“This emergency proclamation authorizes the expenditure of state monies as appropriated for quick and efficient relief caused by the volcanic eruption,” Ige said in a statement.

The dramatic eruption had been predicted by geologists for several days, with the state calling for preemptive evacuations before any fissures had been spotted. The area had been rocked by more than 250 earthquakes during a 24-hour period, leading scientists with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to predict an impending eruption.

USGS scientists reported from the area Friday afternoon that the lava flows had halted and it did not appear that other eruptions had occurred.

“The flows are no longer active,” the USGS said in a report. “At this time, no other fissures have erupted from along the rift zone.”

The USGS later reported that a magnitude 5.4 earthquake hit the island of Hawaii near the Kilauea volcano at 21:32 UTC, or 11:30 a.m. local time. The quake did not generate a tsunami but was felt throughout the entire island.


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