Volcanoes National Park reopens more areas as Kilauea eruption comes to a halt
Maunaiki and Ka‘u Desert trails remain closed
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By The Maui News
HAWAII NATIONAL PARK, Hawaiʻi--Kīlauea volcano is not erupting. Hilina Pali Road, Kulanaokuaiki Campground, the Footprints Exhibit and Pepeiao Cabin in Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park are now open.
In addition, the park reopened the coastal campsite at Kaʻaha, Devastation Trail and Keanakākoʻi earlier this week. The areas were closed after the June 3 fissure eruption began near the volcano's remote upper Southwest Rift Zone.
Maunaiki Trail and Kaʻū Desert Trail past the Footprints Exhibit remain closed due to elevated gases and other volcanic hazards that remain at the eruption site. Visitors should plan ahead and check the park website for updates before entering the park.
Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (USGS HVO) reported elevated volcanic gas emissions, ground subsidence and severe earth cracks that formed during the short-lived eruption. These cracks have unstable edges and could continue to widen.
Other hazards include hot, glass-like surfaces on the new lava flows, uneven and rough terrain and hot temperatures.
The fissure eruption started on Monday, June 3 around 12:30 a.m. in a remote area in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, about about 2.5 miles southwest of Kīlauea caldera near the volcano's upper Southwest Rift Zone.