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- Path: sparky!uunet!olivea!decwrl!pa.dec.com!nntpd2.cxo.dec.com!nntpd.lkg.dec.com!nodename.dec.com!falcone
- From: falcone@psdvax.enet.dec.com (Joe Falcone)
- Newsgroups: rec.travel
- Subject: volcano update
- Message-ID: <1992Nov19.214516.8464@nntpd.lkg.dec.com>
- Date: 19 Nov 92 21:22:06 GMT
- Sender: usenet@nntpd.lkg.dec.com (USENET News System)
- Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation
- Lines: 29
-
-
- The Puo O'o vent on the Kiluaea volcano on the Big Island is
- currently producing spectacular displays as lava covers some
- of the campground, historical sites, and black sand beach at
- Kamoamoa. My wife and I just flew back from Hawaii and we
- saw the flow during the day on the 14th and at night on the
- 16th. The night flow was incredible as the entire beach appeared
- "on fire" as the lava "fought back the waves" creating new land
- at the sea. Local folks (who you figured would be used to this)
- said that the access to the spectacle was unprecedented since in
- previous flows either terrain or civil defense officials prevented
- access. During the destruction of Kalapana (the last great flow),
- Harry Kim, the civil defense director, kept spectators away from
- the sight of grief-stricken homeowners watching their houses go up
- in smoke.
-
- This flow in on National Park property as the park service is doing
- a terrific job of maintaining access to the flows (including helicopter
- water drops to prevent wildfires). If you are going to Hawaii shortly
- or know someone who is going or is in Hawaii, tell them to get
- themselves on to the Big Island and see this. The park service
- has an Eruption Hotline (call (808) 555 1212 to get this number) which
- has excellent info on the status of the flow and access to it.
-
- Spectacular doesn't quite describe the sensation of getting within feet
- of 1200 degree molten rock actually flowing towards you, setting wood
- on fire, crackling over the terrain.
-
- Joe 'Lava Changed Me' Falcone
-