Lava Prompts Evacuation Advisory in Hawaiian Community

The lava flow has slowly advanced on the Big Island community of Pahoa.

The lava flow has slowly advanced on the Big Island community of Pahoa. Hawaii Volcano Observatory / USGS

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A volcano has been taking aim at a Big Island community for weeks. Now the slow-moving threat is less than 100 yards away.

Over the past few weeks, GovExec State & Local has been carefully tracking the slow-moving lava flow from a Hawaiian volcano as it approaches the Big Island community of Pahoa. Unlike most disasters, this one is unfolding slowly and presents unique challenges for local levels of government.

In the case of Hawaii County, which covers all of the Big Island, it’s necessitated local officials to build alternate emergency roads—the lava is expected to cross a major state highway—and think about how to provide government services for a community that is being seems very likely to end up divided in two as the lava flow advances on Pahoa.  

Up until this weekend, the advance of the lava did not necessitate evacuations in the village, but that’s now changed. As of Monday morning local time, the lava flow was 100 yards from the nearest residential property, according to a county civil defense advisory:

Based on the current flow location, direction and advancement, residents in the flow path were placed on an evacuation advisory and notified of possible need for evacuation beginning last night.  The evacuation advisory for those residents down slope of the flow will continue and residents will be kept informed of the flow status and advancement.  

Click here for the most updated information on the lava flow from the Hawaii Volcano Observatory.

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