Hawaii experiences volcano eruption and earthquake
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, Hawaii’s Big Island experienced an eruption of the Kilauea volcano following a 4.4 magnitude earthquake. The earthquake was recorded to have hit the island nearly an hour before the volcano eruption within the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Sunday night.
Volcano erupts on Hawaii's Big Island, produces steam cloud https://t.co/n1auf31Wd6 #hawaiivolcano pic.twitter.com/4um8vrIHv8
— Gulf Today (@gulftoday) December 21, 2020
The eruption began inside the Halema’uma’u crater with the reports of volcano shot lava fountains 165 feet into the sky that fed the growing lava lake forming within the crater that holds water. The National Weather Service (NWS) in Hawaii indicates a new lava flow is interacting with a pool of water within the carter resulting in the short-term epic eruption.
Once all the water evaporated from the body of water a steam cloud shot 30,000 feet into the atmosphere that triggered the NWS in Honolulu issued an advisory warning for falling ash from the volcano. After the volcano activity decreased, NWS Honolulu disclosed a “low-level steam cloud” was lingering in the area and the eruption was easing.
The earthquake caused no damage to structures or buildings with more than 500 reports of people who felt the earthquake. The volcano eruption wasn’t destructive but made for some amazing videos of a volcano eruption.