UPDATE: LAVA FLOW—A SILENT

VOLCANIC HAZARD IN HAWAII

Friday, November 28, 2014

LAVA FLOW MOVING AT 5 M PER

HOUR TOWARDS PAHOA

WHAT HAS HAPPENED?

• The lava from Kilauea, a non-

explosive volcano, that has been

erupting for years, emerged from a

vent in June.

• Traveling slowly, it entered Pahoa

on Oct. 26, when it crossed a

country road at the edge of town.

Thursday, October 30, 2014

LAVA FLOW FROM KILAUEA CONTINUES

ITS ADVANCE TOWARD PAHOA

PAHOA HAWAII

• A contingent of National Guard

troops was dispatched to Pahoa on

Thursday, October 30, to provide

security to the Big Island

community that was being

threatened by the slow-moving

river of molten lava creeping

slowly towards the town's center.

WHAT HAPPENED?

• The leading edge of the molten rock

stalled at the edge of town on Oct. 30,

but lava began to break away at several

other upslope spots..

• Between October 30 and November 28,

the flow smothered part of a cemetery,

and burned down a garden shed, tires,

some metal materials, and vegetation.

Friday, November 28, 2014

LAVA FLOW ARRIVES AND SETS FIRE

TO FIRST HOUSE

WHAT HAPPENED?

• The molten rock set fire to the first

house in Pahoa around midday on

Monday, November 10th .

• The house was allowed to burn as

firefighters took actions to prevent its

spread to other houses.

• The home's occupants had already left

the residence.

WHAT IS NEXT?

• Officials are working on safe

evacuation routes and plans.

• Many residents have evacuated.

• Having put their belongings in

storage, others are prepared to leave

for a friend’s house, or elsewhere, if

necessary when the lava gets closer.

•

BACKGROUND

ELEMENTS OF VOLCANIC

HAZARDS AND RISK

HAZARDS

ELEMENTS OF RISK

EXPOSURE

VULNERABILITY LOCATION

RISK

VOLCANOES

PART OF THE PACIFIC “RING OF FIRE,”

HAWAII HAS ACTIVE VOLCANOES AS A

RESULT OF COMPLEX SUBDUCTION OF

THE PACIFIC PLATE BENEATH THE

EURASIAN PLATE

100 OF THE WORLD’S 1,500 ACTIVE

VOLCANOES ARE IN JAPAN

LATERAL BLAST

VOLCANIC

ERUPTIONS

PYROCLASTIC FLOWS

FLYING DEBRIS

ASH PLUME AND

GASES

LAVA FLOWS

LAHARS

TOXIC GASES

CAUSES

OF RISK

CASE HISTORIES

VOLCANO HAZARDS

CAN HAVE FAR REACHING IMPACTS

• VERTICAL PLUME (can affect

jet aircraft)

• ASH AND TEPHRA

• LATERAL BLAST

• PYROCLASTIC CLOUDS,

BURSTS, AND FLOWS

VOLCANO HAZARDS

CAN HAVE FAR REACHING IMPACTS

• LAVA FLOWS

• LAHARS (can bury villages)

• EARTHQUAKES (related to

movement of lava)

• “VOLCANIC WINTER” (causing

famine and mass extinctions)

THE REASONS FOR

DISASTERS TO OCCUR. . .

• The community is UN-

PREPARED for what will likely

happen, not to mention the

low-probability of occurrence—

high-probability of adverse

consequences event.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community has NO DISASTER

PLANNING SCENARIO or

WARNING SYSTEM in place as a

strategic framework for early threat

identification and coordinated

local, national, regional, and

international countermeasures.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community LACKS THE

CAPACITY TO RESPOND in a

timely and effective manner to

the full spectrum of expected

and unexpected emergency

situations.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community is INEFFICIENT

during recovery and

reconstruction because it HAS

NOT LEARNED from either the

current experience or the

cumulative prior experiences.

THE KEYS TO RESILIENCE: 1) KNOW THE ERUPTIVE HISTORY OF

YOUR REGION’S VOLCANOES,

2) BE PREPARED

3) HAVE A WARNING SYSTEM

4) EVACUATE

5) LEARN FROM THE

EXPERIENCE AND START OVER

HAWAII’S

COMMUNITIESDATA BASES

AND INFORMATION

HAZARDS:GROUND SHAKING

GROUND FAILURE

SURFACE FAULTING

TECTONIC DEFORMATION

TSUNAMI RUN UP

AFTERSHOCKS

•VOLCANO HAZARDS

•PEOPLE & BLDGS.

•VULNERABILITY

•LOCATION

VOLCANO RISK

RISK

ACCEPTABLE RISK

UNACCEPTABLE RISK

GOAL: VOLCANO

DISASTER RESILIENCE

• PREPAREDNESS

•PROTECTION

•EARLY WARNING

•EMERGENCY RESPONSE

•RECOVERY and

RECONSTRUCTION

POLICY OPTIONS