Kilauea's lava making dramatic march to sea
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
HILO, Hawai'i — Kilauea Volcano is putting on a show again as the two-year anniversary of the "Mother's Day" lava flow approaches.
The flow, now stalled, may reach the sea this weekend.
Lava from the Pu'u 'O'o vent cascaded off a rock ledge this week and flowed rapidly toward the ocean, prompting scientists to predict that it might reach
the sea by this weekend. As of yesterday, the lava stalled a half-mile from the coast while breakout flows branched out and started small brushfires.
The dramatic sight of lava pouring into the ocean has not occurred since late last summer. The spectacle drew up to 3,000 visitors a day to Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.
Parks officials said the number of visitors has picked up, to about 800 a day, but spokeswoman Mardie Lane cautioned that a hike to view the lava is "not a walk in the park."
• On the Web: Photos and updates at: hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/
update/main.html#maps
"Basically you are into an hour and a half over a lava field that is deeply fractured, very uneven, slippery — it's rough and rugged going," Lane said.
