(ABOVE PHOTO) UPDATE: New photos show lava entering the transfer station on Thursday morning, courtesy Ena Media Hawaii (Nov. 13, 2014)

NEWS BRIEFS

• Civil defense reports the three breakouts remain active and continue to advance uplsope of the stalled flow front.
• The breakout near the transfer station continues to fill into the driveway area to the rear and south side of the facility and is burning the asphalt road material.
• Smoke conditions are currently moderate to heavy, and blowing in a north northeast direction towards the Ainaloa, Hawaiian Paradise Park and Keaau areas.
• UPDATE: Post Office Road in Pahoa has been reopened to two way traffic.

Lava continues to enter transfer station area. Photo courtesy Ena Media Hawaii on Nov. 13, 2014.

The view from above Apa’a Street looking downslope towards Pahoa Village. Photo courtesy Ena Media Hawaii on Nov. 13, 2014.

View over the flow field looking upslope. The transfer station is seen near the center of the photo. Courtesy Ena Media Hawaii on Nov. 13, 2014.

PRIMARY SOURCES

This morning’s assessment shows that the three breakouts remain active and continue to advance These breakouts are located in the area of the cemetery below Apa’a Street; above Apa’a Street in the area west or upslope of the transfer station; and .2 miles upslope of Apa’a Street. The breakouts currently do not pose an immediate threat to area residents and will be monitored closely. The breakout near the transfer station continues to fill into the driveway area to the rear and south side of the facility and burning is involving the asphalt road material. All other burning with other breakouts is limited to vegetation only.

Smoke conditions are currently moderate to heavy with a light south wind blowing the smoke in a north northeast direction towards the Ainaloa, Hawaiian Paradise Park and Keaau areas. Smoke conditions may increase in some areas and residents down wind that may be sensitive or have respiratory problems are advised to take necessary precautions and to remain indoors. The weather service has forecasted continued south winds for the next few days.

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.

The Pahoa Village Road between Apa’a Street and the Post Office Road will remain closed and limited to area residents only. Access to the businesses and commercial areas of the Pahoa town can be made through the Pahoa Village Road at the intersection of Highways 130 and 132. We apologize for any inconvenience the road closure may be presenting with and remind everyone that the Pahoa town center and businesses are open and accessible.

Civil Defense and public safety personnel will be operating in the area round the clock to maintain close observations of flow activity.

Additional updates will be broadcasted as conditions change. ​Hawaii County Civil Defense on Nov. 13 at 8 a.m. HST

Kīlauea volcano continues to erupt at its summit and within its East Rift Zone. Lava breakouts remain active and continue to advance in three areas behind the leading edge of the June 27th lava flow that stalled on October 30. According to the 0800h County Civil Defense update, these active breakouts are below Apaʻa Street in the area of the cemetery, in the area of the transfer station, and 0.2 mi (0.32 km) upslope of Apaʻa Street. Since ~0600h Thursday morning, Kīlauea’s summit has been re-inflating, following the deflation that began early Wednesday morning. The surface of the summit lava lake at Halemaʻumaʻu Crater was measured at 50 m below the rim of the Overlook vent.

June 27th Lava Flow Observations: HVO scientists conducted a helicopter overflight Wednesday morning to assess the progress of the lava flow. The leading edge of the flow had not advanced beyond where it stalled on October 30, in a residential area approximately 155 meters (170 yards) above Pāhoa Village Road, but breakout activity continued in areas upslope of this leading edge. The closest active lava to Pāhoa Village Road was located several hundred meters upslope of the road, below the Pāhoa cemetery. Minor activity continues around the transfer station. The lobe of the lava flow farther upslope of the transfer station continued to advance in its northeasterly trend, as of 0900h Thursday reaching roughly 300 m (0.2 mi) above Apaʻa Street.

Puʻu ʻŌʻō Observations: No significant changes were noted near Puʻu ʻŌʻō. Seismic tremor continued with relatively steady amplitude, and webcams revealed no strong variations in the pattern of glow from degassing vents nor the configuration of the crater floor. Recently HVO scientists have observed small incandescent openings in the north, northeast, south, and southeast pits in Puʻu ʻŌʻō’s crater. The tiltmeter at Puʻu ʻŌʻō showed little change, does not appear to have recorded significant deformations associated with the recent summit deflation. The GPS-measured length across the cone has not changed significantly since July. No earthquakes were recorded from the vicinity of Puʻu ʻŌʻō in the past day. The most recent measurement of sulfur dioxide emissions from the East Rift Zone was 320 tonnes per day on October 31, 2014.

Summit Observations: Deflationary tilt continued through Wednesday, and as of ~0600h Thursday morning Kīlauea summit has been gradually re-inflating. The surface height of the lava lake in the Overlook vent fluctuated slightly over the past day, remaining roughly 50 m below the vent rim. Volcanic tremor persisted at fluctuating amplitudes, with 2 small earthquakes being auto-located. Small amounts of particulate material were carried aloft by the plume. Summit emissions of sulfur dioxide were measured at 6,200 tonnes/day on November 5 (see caveat below), but winds did not allow for repeated measurement through the week-long period ending November 11, 2014.USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory on Nov. 12

This USGS HVO photo shows the house which was recently destroyed by lava, just below the center of the picture. Lava bypassed the garage, which still stands at the center of the photo. Lava briefly entered the fish pond next to the house, before continuing downslope. Also visible is the small active flow next to the transfer station, and the larger, more rapidly moving finger about 360 meters (390 yards) upslope from Apaʻa Street at upper right. The smoke at upper left marks another breakout widening the flow into the adjacent forest. The view is to the southwest. (Nov. 12, 2014)

This USGS map uses a satellite image acquired in March 2014 (provided by Digital Globe) as a base at 1:13,000 scale to show the area around the front of the June 27th lava flow. The area of the flow on November 10, 2014, at 10:45 AM is shown in pink, while widening and advancement of the flow as mapped on November 12, at 7:00 AM is shown in red. The latitude and longitude of the front of the narrow finger of lava advancing toward Pāhoa was 19.49590, -154.95256 (Decimal Degrees; WGS84). The dotted blue lines show steepest-descent paths in the area, calculated from a 1983 digital elevation model (DEM).
The tip of the flow is not active, but there are active breakouts on the north side of the flow field about 400 meters (437 yards) upslope. The flow tip is 155 meters (170 yards) from Pāhoa Village Road.
Surface activity also continues elsewhere on the flow. Surface breakouts on the north side of the flow field range from about 435 meters (475 yards) mauka to 440 meters (481 yards) makai of the Apaʻa Street. One of the breakouts is moving northeast and inside the fence of the Transfer Station. A breakout moved northward along Apaʻa street and eastward onto a property, destroyed a house, continued northeast and has reached 270 meters (295 yards) makai of Apaʻa Street. A breakout 760 meters (831 yards) mauka of Apaʻa Street has continued to move northeastward and has flowed to within 375 meters (410 yards) of Apaʻa Street. Other breakouts continued to flow on the north (2.4 kilometers; 1.5 miles) and on the south (1.2 kilometers; 0.75 miles) sides of the flow field.