Hawaii Residents Forced Out of Homes

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It has been nearly three weeks since Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupted. Nearly 2,000 people have had to evacuate from their homes in the Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens neighborhoods, since lava started spewing and cutting off access to roads.

Volcano statistics include more than 20 fissures have opened, 82 structures have been destroyed, and 2,200 acres have been destroyed by lava. About 245 people have had to go to evacuation shelters as of now.

On a good note, there have been no reported deaths, only one injury on a 57-year-old man who had lava hit his leg.

Some residents insisted on staying in their homes and watching over their property, while others evacuated as soon as possible. Hawaii County officials issued mandatory evacuation orders for only those two neighborhoods, in which about 2,300 people live.

On Tuesday, county officials sent an emergency cell phone alert telling any residents still in homes to evacuate immediately because of two new fissures emitting gases. Firefighters eventually had to go door to door to make sure everyone had left. Fissures 22 and 7 are the closest to both neighborhoods and both of those fissures are producing the most lava.

Resident Steve Gebbie said, “I don’t know what’s going to be left of Leilani. I really think it might be wiped out.” Lava has started to flow near a nearby neighborhood geothermal plant, which has been now shut down as a precaution.

The U.S Geological Survey has reported multiple earthquakes of various intensities near the volcano summit in a matter of 5-7 hours on Friday.

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