Kilauea Volcano Destroys School With No Sign of Slowing Down After 10 Weeks

Kilauea’s fissure 8 continues to wreak havoc on the Big Island of Hawaii. More buildings met with the lava flowing from the fissure leaving more destruction with still no signs of stopping.

On Thursday, lava from Kilauea Volcano’s fissure 8 destroyed the Kua O Ka La Public Charter School and Ahalanui County Beach Park as it made its ways to the ocean according to the United States Geological Survey. Since it began erupting 10 weeks ago, Kilauea caused thousands of buildings and homes to be destroyed in the lower East Rift Zone and led to thousands of residents evacuated from the area.

Kua O Ka La Public Charter School is located in the rural area of Hilo, Hawaii. Students from pre-K to the 12th grade attend Kua O Ka La, which is the first solar-powered school in Hawaii. A Go Fund Me campaign started on July 8 to help relocate the school as it was inaccessible at the time. The campaign goal is $15,000 and planned to use the funds to buy supplies needed to start the school year for kindergarten to 6th-grade students.

As the lava continues flowing from Fissure 8, earthquakes continue to shake the Kilauea Volcano summit. A magnitude-5.3 earthquake shook the area Saturday night. Since then, the agency says the current rate of earthquakes in the region is 25-35 an hour, and it expects more as it leads to an explosion or collapse event.

Aside from the lava and earthquake, there are other dangers in the area such as laze rising from the ocean when the lava makes it to the water, causing a plume containing hydrochloric acid and volcanic particles that can irritate the skin, eyes, and lungs. The USGS continues to advise everyone to avoid the area at all costs.

Another troublesome result from the Kilauea Volcano is lava balls and lava boats, which are contributing to the destruction of the area.