Footage of Hawaii volcano eruption captured in  fly-over

Caleb Jones, Nov 29 2022

Waves of orange, glowing lava and smoky ash were filmed by the US Coast Guard as they conducted a fly-over of Hawaii’s Mauna Loa after it erupted for the first time since 1984.

The eruption began on Monday (NZT) in the summit caldera of the volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island, after a series fairly large earthquakes around the volcano.

An “aerial observation flight of the eruption” was conducted after a request from Hawaii’s civil defence agency, a US Coast Guard officer said in a statement.

A C-130 Hercules aircrew conducted the fly-over along with Hawaii Civil Defence Agency, US Geological Survey, and other state and county officials to assess the situation.

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* World's largest active volcano, Hawaii's Mauna Loa, starts to erupt for first time in 38 years

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US COAST GUARD
Footage of Hawaii's Mauna Loa after it erupted, captured by the US Coast Guard.

The eruption of the world’s largest active volcano wasn't immediately endangering towns, but the US Geological Survey warned the roughly 200,000 people on the Big Island that an eruption “can be very dynamic, and the location and advance of lava flows can change rapidly”.

Officials told residents to be ready to evacuate if lava flows start heading toward populated areas.

The areas where lava was emerging – the volcano’s summit crater and vents along the volcano’s northeast flank – are both far from homes and communities.

Officials urged the public to stay away from them, given the dangers posed by lava, which is shooting 30 to 60m into the air.

Lifelong Big Island resident Bobby Camara said everyone across the island should keep track of the eruption. He said he’s seen three Mauna Loa eruptions in his lifetime and stressed the need for vigilance.

“I think everybody should be a little bit concerned,'” he said. “We don't know where the flow is going, we don’t know how long it's going to last.”

Gunner Mench, a resident who owns an art gallery, said he awoke shortly after midnight and saw an alert on his phone about the eruption.

Mench and his wife, Ellie, ventured out to film the eerie red glow cast over the island, watching as lava spilled down the volcano's side.

“You could see it spurting up into the air, over the edge of this depression,” Mench said. “Right now it’s just entertainment, but the concern is [it could reach populated areas]”.

Mauna Loa is one of five volcanoes that together make up the Big Island of Hawaii, the southernmost island in the Hawaiian archipelago.

Mauna Loa, rising 4169m above sea level, is the much larger neighbour of Kilauea, which erupted in a residential neighbourhood and destroyed 700 homes in 2018.

Some of Mauna Loa’s slopes are much steeper than Kilauea's, so lava can flow much faster when it erupts. During a 1950 eruption, the mountain’s lava travelled 24km to the ocean in under three hours.