Lava bubbling below Hawaii’s Big Island continued to tear through Earth’s surface near the Kilauea volcano Saturday, creating two new vents spewing toxic gas and magma.
The new vents cracked open and began oozing lava and sulfur dioxide in the Leilani Estates subdivision in Puna in the early morning — bringing the total vent count up to eight.
The latest fissure was detected near Makamae and Kahukai streets, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
And the mayhem is expected to continue, as “additional outbreaks in the area are likely,” the Hawaii civil defense department warned.
Officials expect more earthquakes to follow since a massive 6.9-magnitude temblor first shook the island 12:33 p.m. on Friday.
Aftershocks may include “rock falls and associated ash clouds,” they said.
Some 1,700 people were vacated Friday as Kilauea began erupting at 4:45 p.m. Thursday.
So far, five houses were destroyed and thousands of customers briefly lost power. No injuries have been reported.
“I felt like the whole side of our hill was going to explode,” said Tesha “Mirah” Montoya, who had to vacate her home with her family. “The earthquake was what made us start running and start throwing guinea pigs and bunnies in the car.”
Montoya struggled to abandon her three-story octagonal house with her husband and daughter.
“I’m nothing without the land. It’s part of my being,” she said. “My heart and soul’s there.”
Residents from Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens are still not allowed to return to their homes and police, fire and the National Guard have been assisting in relocation efforts.
Roughly 75 residents were staying in shelters and 50 slept overnight in their cars, according to the Star-Advertiser.
Since Monday, the island has been rocked by at least 600 smaller quakes generated by lava flow from the Big Island’s most active volcano.
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