Kilauea volcano ended a nearly three-day pause in the lower Puna eruption Saturday when a 16th fissure opened about a half-mile northeast of Lanipuna Gardens.
The vent was spattering lava in a forested area and no homes or roads were threatened.
Jim Kauahikaua, a geophysicist with the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said the vent’s activity had diminished by the afternoon, when it had covered an area 200-300 yards long and about 100 yards wide. Lava was moving away from Lanipuna.
“It was quite spectacular while it was going,” he said.
At 7 p.m., Civil Defense said in a message that another fissure — No. 17 — opened about “100 meters below 16.” Minor spattering was still occurring at No. 16, though there was no significant lava flow.
No other fissures were ejecting lava by press time, though gas emissions remained high at other vents.
Mark Clawson, who owns a nearby orchard, said he could hear a loud whooshing sound from his porch that morning after he woke up, but couldn’t see the 16th vent.
He said he was located uphill and wasn’t planning to evacuate yet. Instead, Clawson said he would spend the rest of the day tending to his trees.
“The possibility always existed,” he said, regarding an eruption occurring near his property. “The odds were against it. If you live long enough, you are going to experience many more things.”
The eruption in lower Puna began May 3 on Kilauea’s East Rift Zone in Leilani Estates, where activity had been concentrated until recently. The fissures on Saturday occurred farther down the rift zone in a sparsely populated agricultural area.
HVO said fissure No. 16 started at about 6:45 a.m. and was located about a mile northeast of fissure No. 15, which entered Lanipuna a few days before.
Civil Defense estimated it was located about 1 mile from Puna Geothermal Venture. HVO estimated the distance was more than 500 yards. The power plant is located away from its property boundary, which can affect estimates.
Talmadge Magno, Hawaii County Civil Defense administrator, said PGV is uphill of the vent and wasn’t threatened.
On Friday, Civil Defense began advising residents from Kapoho to Kalapana that they should make evacuation plans since they would likely have little warning before a fissure threatened their property or access routes. The advisory came after geologists noted that magma continued to intrude downrift, or northeast, from Leilani.
Magno reiterated Saturday that they should heed the warning.
“I do know people are getting concerned,” he said. “They should have been concerned since last week.
“We’re putting the word out that the eruption continues and that people need to consider self-evacuation or voluntary evacuation at this point, or at least make preparations that they are going to have to leave the area.”
Mandatory evacuations so far have affected about 2,000 residents in Leilani, Lanipuna and along Alaili Road near Highway 130. At least in Leilani, residents have been allowed to come and go as conditions warrant.
No additional evacuation orders had been issued by Saturday evening, though Civil Defense directed vacation rentals in the affected area Saturday to cease operations. That area stretches from Kapoho to Kalapana, and includes Leilani and the Black Sands subdivision.
Magno said he didn’t know how many vacation rentals are occupied but he knows there’s a large number in that area.
“People are asking, ‘Should I cancel my weekend down there?’ At this point, I would say yes,” he said.
Evacuation shelters are open at the Pahoa and Keaau community centers and are accepting people who evacuate voluntarily.
Cracks were observed on Highway 132, also known as Pahoa-Kapoho Road, on Friday, and the potential closure of that road from lava inundation, or if the cracks make it impassable, remains a concern.
Magno said that would leave Highway 137 and Government Beach Road along the coast as the only exit route.
Highway 130 is closed from Malama Street to Kamaili Road after the volcanic activity caused large cracks to develop. Pohoiki Road is closed from Highway 132 to Highway 137.
Magno said there are plans to cover the cracks on Highway 130 so it can be used as an escape route, but that work hasn’t begun and likely will need to be put out to bid.
Additionally, reopening the Chain of Craters emergency access route, partially covered by lava from the Pu‘u ‘O‘o vent, is an option that’s being considered, Magno said.
“Everything is on the table now,” he said.
While most people might not see their property inundated with lava, there’s still the potential of them being isolated if access routes are severed.
Magno said he expects some people will want to stay and Civil Defense is thinking about how to provide supplies under that scenario.
“People are resourceful,” he said. “Whether they hike supplies in or out or the government comes up with a method to ferry in food and water, that’s something we are going to have to figure out as time goes on.”
The eruption, which so far has claimed 36 structures, mostly homes, and covered more than 116 acres, has been compared to the 1955 eruption that also occurred in lower Puna on Kilauea’s East Rift Zone. That lasted for 88 days and created multiple vents along the rift.
Magno commented that it’s possible the eruption could go on for years and be more like Pu‘u ‘O‘o, which now appears calm after 35 years of activity.
At Kilauea’s summit, the lava lake was expected to have receded below the water table as of Friday, potentially causing a large steam-driven explosion that could spread ash over parts of the island. Accumulations are expected to be no more than a few millimeters.
As of deadline Saturday, no such explosion had occurred, though occasional rockfalls continue to trigger small ash clouds.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park remains closed due to the increased danger. Only the Kahuku unit remains open.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.