May 13: Fissure 17 Starts

I’ve not covered every single fissure: see the HVO Photo/Multimedia blog, the HVO timeline, KITV, and HawaiiNewsNow for fissure-by-fissure coverage, not to mention HNN reporter Milika Lincoln’s Instagram vids and photos, and Mike Kalbers’ wonderful daily flyovers.

Activity ebbed and flowed, some days with more steam, some with more spatter. For the most part, lava flows didn’t go very far, and were largely sticky, clumpy, clanky a’a. But I bookmarked fissure 17 early on for particularly dramatic fountains (those blocks it’s hurling are called “lava bombs”) and incredible booms and roars:

#LeilaniEstatesEruption LATEST (May 15 at 8:30 AM): Incredible new sunrise footage captures the sounds and sight of lava fountains and gas bombs erupting from the 17th fissure — which broke out Saturday off of Halekamahina Loop Road northeast of Lanipuna Gardens on the Kalapana side of Highway 132. According to USGS HVO scientists, fissure 17 has created a narrow lava flow heading makai — or downslope toward the ocean — and has already covered about two miles. Civil Defense officials say based on their last measurement, this flow front is now a little less than a mile from Highway 137. At one point yesterday, it was moving at a rate of about 100 yards an hour, but it has since slowed a bit. The flow has been running roughly parallel to Highway 132 or Pahoa Kapoho Road. Officials say it's heading east in the direction of Kapoho toward Highway 137 — also called Old Government Beach Road, or more commonly referred to by residents as Waa Waa Road. This fissure has already claimed one structure — but officials say there are currently no homes or buildings in its current path. This has been the longest-lasting, most active fissure of the 20 that have opened up since this the first on May 3 along Mohala Street within #LeilaniEstates. Stay tuned to @HawaiiNewsNow for the very latest developments #HInews #HawaiiNews #HNN #HawaiiNewsNow #WeAreYourSource (Video: @bradah.dom / @ikaikamarzo)

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and it was the first one that really seemed to be making a run for the ocean and creating a sustained lava flow.

Here’s May 13 and 14th flyovers from Mick Kalber:

Luckily, it chose a route that doesn’t have many houses downslope. And unlike other fissures, it just kept going and going.

And (since I’m posting this backdated): it’s still going on May 19, after making quite an impressive lava fountain and cinder cone for itself over the past two nights.