Hawaii National Park Closes Popular Trails After More Than 200 Earthquakes Were Recorded Near Volcano
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park has closed two hiking areas near Kīlauea after more than 200 shallow earthquakes were recorded beneath the volcano’s summit in one week.
The park closed Halemaʻumaʻu Trail and part of Uēaloha, also known as Byron Ledge Trail, on October 7. According to the National Park Service, the closures cover a total of 1.3 miles.
Both trails descend from the rim toward the floor of Kīlauea caldera. NPS says rockfalls have happened along both routes before.
One already happened during the recent earthquake activity. A magnitude 3.4 earthquake on September 30 caused small rockfalls along the north wall of the caldera.
More than 200 earthquakes were recorded in a week
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The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reported more than 200 shallow earthquakes beneath the summit during the week before the closure. Six more were recorded in the previous 24 hours.
Scientists have also found new cracks on the caldera floor between Uēkahuna and Wahinekapu, or Steaming Bluff.
A USGS status report says magma moved into that area between September 30 and October 1. In some places, it came within about 1,000 feet of the surface.
Kīlauea remains at a WATCH alert level with an ORANGE aviation color code.
Halemaʻumaʻu Trail drops 425 feet into the caldera
Halemaʻumaʻu Trail starts behind Volcano House and drops about 425 feet through rainforest before reaching the caldera floor.
The park’s trail page lists the hike as moderate. It is about 0.8 miles one way from Crater Rim Trail to the caldera floor.
Byron Ledge is also used as a connection to Kīlauea Iki Trail and Nāhuku, or Thurston Lava Tube.
Viewing areas on the Keanakākoʻi side of the caldera had already closed the week before. NPS said the nearest parking is about a mile away, which could make a quick evacuation difficult.
Kīlauea is still highly pressurized
USGS says the usual pattern that helped scientists forecast Kīlauea’s recent lava fountains has changed.
The last major lava-fountaining episode ended August 25. Since then, magma has continued moving beneath the summit, including the September 30 intrusion that caused the recent earthquake swarm.
NPS says visitors must stay out of closed areas and away from cliff edges around the caldera. Those edges can be unstable and collapse without warning.
