Big Island firefighters rescued a wayward hiker from a lava flow near Kalapana early this morning.

A crew from the Pahoa Fire Station received a call about 2:15 a.m. about a woman being stranded on the lava flow near where it enters the ocean.

The 43-year-old woman told rescuers via cellphone she left a designated viewing area to get a closer look at the lava ocean entry point.

Fire Department rescue crew members hiked about three-quarters of a mile to reach the shoreline and located the woman via flashlight more than a mile away.

Due to darkness and the hazardous terrain, the hiker was told to stay put, fire officials said.

A helicopter was called to the scene and a rescue crew member was lowered down to the lava to retrieve the woman. She was flown back to a landing zone at the end of state highway 130 where she was examined by paramedics before being released.