Hawaii to most people is regarded as a tropical paradise, but as of late, the peacefulness traditionally associated with the island has been tarnished after the Kilauea volcano erupted and destroyed the homes of many islanders. This disaster led government officials to place an evacuation order on residents, but despite the destruction that the volcano has left, many of the islanders are still refusing to leave their homes.

“It is horrible how these people have to evacuate from their houses and face the potential threat of losing their houses, but at least they will not be in harm’s way,” sophomore Nathalie Montano said.

Residents were woken up on May 3 to an alert that they were in danger due to possible eruptions from Hawaii’s most active volcano, Kilauea. Geologists reported that morning that high-speed winds were causing a rise in sulfur dioxide, meaning that a high level of exposure would be detrimental to someone near the area. The evacuation began shortly after there was an increasing amount of fissures on the road causing lava to spew out. Due to this high level of exposure, authorities began to worry that a nearby plant full of flammable substances would be affected by the eruption and possibly cause a larger safety hazard. In order to prevent this, they have recently cleared the plant out from harmful substances in case the eruption reached the Geothermal Plant.

On Tuesday afternoon, chaos ensued within Hawaii residents when two vents erupted from Kilauea causing molten lava to reach many residential areas, taking almost thirty-six structures alongside it. Some residents have been allowed to go back home to retrieve any of their necessities. Shortly after the eruption, residents experienced a massive earthquake that has caused geologists to predict that the eruption can further increase throughout the month.

“The fact that many houses have been destroyed from Kilauea is horrible because families are basically left without nothing and the worst part that there is the potential of a stronger eruption,” junior Dain Anderson said.

As of now, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is concerned that Kilauea volcano could potentially emit ballistics rocks and reach an explosive eruption that has not been seen in Hawaii since 1924. Despite this, they are still unsure of what may occur in the future due to the volcano’s constant change, but they are now giving as many warnings as possible to Hawaii residents in order to keep them clear from danger.

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