Newly Formed Ground Still Hot : Some Hawaiians Return to Homes Spared by Lava

Residents were allowed to return to palm-shaded homes near a quiescent lava flow, but authorities warned them Monday not to stand on the still-cooling, newly formed rock that had oozed from Kilauea Volcano.

“Be aware that the lava is very hot directly under the surface, and cave-ins are a real hazard, so stay off,” Hawaii County Civil Defense chief Harry Kim warned as the evacuation order was lifted.

Kim said that some houses were without water, electricity, gas or phone service because of precautionary shut-offs and lava damage.

The molten lava rolled seven miles down the hillside from the volcano and forced the evacuation before it invaded the Kalapana Gardens subdivision. It has destroyed 15 houses there and in nearby areas since Friday.

Offerings to Pele

Some of the evacuees left offerings to appease Pele, the Hawaiian volcano god. Lynn Dotson placed two roses on the front doorstep of her two-story frame house when she left it Friday. Lava approached her home on three sides, but it was spared.

The loss of 13 houses Friday was the most destruction of developed property in one day since Kilauea began erupting Jan. 3, 1983.

The lava flowed from a rift in a lake of molten rock 2,100 feet above sea level. It traveled through underground tubes formed from earlier flows and surfaced near Kalapana, where it covered about a fifth of the village’s largest residential subdivision.

Although the lava flow stagnated late Saturday morning, Kim told residents to be ready in case it should again flow down the slope and imperil that area.

“Residents deciding to move back at this time should be aware the potential for further flows remains,” he said. “It is recommended that that you delay movement of large and bulky items, to see if the condition becomes more stabilized.”

Kim said that sightseers would be kept out of the area until today.