PAHOA — The June 27 lava flow advanced another 225 yards as of Tuesday morning but it wasn’t clear yet which path of steepest descent it might favor. ADVERTISING PAHOA — The June 27 lava flow advanced another 225 yards
PAHOA — The June 27 lava flow advanced another 225 yards as of Tuesday morning but it wasn’t clear yet which path of steepest descent it might favor.
The flow is at an area about 2 miles upslope of Highway 130 where two paths of steepest descent, used to indicate likely routes for lava based on topography, nearly intersect.
A Hawaii County Civil Defense map from Tuesday morning used a yellow dot to indicate the active flow front. That dot is on a path of steepest descent that goes through Pahoa Marketplace but Civil Defense Administrator Darryl Oliveira said that doesn’t provide enough detail to offer any conclusions on its likely route.
“It’s still on that general area with those two lines,” Oliveira said.
The other path follows a more northern route and eventually reaches Hawaiian Paradise Park.
A Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight planned for Tuesday could provide additional detail, said spokeswoman Janet Babb.
Oliveira said the flow was about 150 to 200 yards wide at its front.
It was about 2.2 miles from the intersection of Highway 130 and Pahoa Village Road as of Tuesday morning.
Tours of the stalled flow near the closed Pahoa waste transfer station are continuing for students.
After Tuesday, about 500 students would have visited the cooling lava, Oliveira said.
The next community lava meeting is at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Pahoa High School cafeteria.
