PAHOA, Hawaii (AP) – Hundreds of anxious residents on the Big Island of Hawaii hunkered down Saturday for what could be weeks or months of upheaval as the dangers from an erupting Kilauea volcano continued to grow.
Lava spurted from volcanic vents, toxic gas filled the air and strong earthquakes – including a magnitude 6.9 temblor on Friday – rocked an already jittery population. The trifecta of natural threats forced the evacuation of more than 1,700 people from communities near the lava and prompted the closure of parks, college campuses and a section of the main road through the area on the Big Island’s southern tip.
Five structures have burned and thousands of customers briefly lost power from one of the larger quakes.
Tesha “Mirah” Montoya, 45, said toxic fumes escaping from the lava vents weren’t enough to make her family evacuate, but the tipping point were the earthquakes.
“I felt like the whole side of our hill was going to explode,” she said. “The earthquake was what made us start running and start throwing guinea pigs and bunnies in the car.”