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Sunday, September 10, 2023

Kaʻū News Briefs, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023

Vog with sulphur gases coming from new eruption at Halema‘uma‘u as seen at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday from Honu‘apo Overlook. By 10 p.m. the air was Unhealthy for Sensitive People in Pāhala. See https://air.doh.hawaii.gov/home/map. Photo by Bob Martin
From the Uēkahuna overlook on Sunday, the new eruption at the summit of Kīlauea is
 visible. The farthest east fissure is near the margin of downdropped block that formed
during the 2018 summit collapse. The base of the main fissure, which is farthest
 west  (right on the image), is approximately 70 meters wide. USGS photo

A NEW SUMMIT ERUPTION at Kīlauea, with a Warning Alert Level issued by USGS and new vog coming from the Volcano, began on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 10 at about 3:15 p.m. The main fountain, which HVO geologists estimated at approximately 50 meters tall, was on the eastern margin of Halemaʻumaʻu crater. As of approximately 4:30 p.m. HST, the fissures extended
approximately 1350 meters to the northeast, onto the downdropped block that formed during the 2018 summit collapse.
   The eruption also carried with it an increase in sulfur gas emissions, which built slowly after 6 p.m. on Sunday to reach a level at 10 p.m. in Pāhala, measured by the state Department of Health, to be Unhealthy for Sensitive People.
    Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park posted: "Kīlauea began erupting this afternoon, serving as a solemn reminder of the sacredness ingrained in this landscape, symbolizing the presence of the akua, the spiritual forces of Hawaiʻi. 

View of Halema‘uma‘u Crater at 8:38 p.m. Sunday, with its new eruption and increased sulphur gas emissions and made Pāhala
 air Unhealthy for Sensitive People by 10 p.m. See https://air.doh.hawaii.gov/home/map. Image from USGS webcam

The privilege to witness the creative forces of a new eruption comes with a responsibility to approach this place with reverence.
     "We implore all visitors heading to the area to exercise the highest level of respect. While eruptions can spark excitement, it is imperative that observation occurs in silence, allowing the eruption's voice to reach you. Native Hawaiian cultural practitioners, who honor the legacy of this land, deserve unreserved respect for their customs."
    The last eruption ended in June without damage to life or property. The 2018 eruption saw lava destroying more than 700 homes in Puna and sending ash fall and poor air quality in all directions.
   With the new eruption, an increase in sulphur in the air began again this Sunday. At 9:15 p.m. Sunday, the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park air quality map showed good air quality at all of its monitors with the emissions going downslope from Halema‘uma‘u, south to the ocean, away from populated areas. However, the vog built up in Pāhala and by 10 p.m. was Unhealthy for Sensitive People. In the coming days, winds are expected to continue to push the vog southwest into Kaʻū. See https://air.doh.hawaii.gov/home/map https://air.doh.hawaii.gov/home/map? See Pāhala air quality graphic at  at fbclid=IwAR30q7ALHZ9D3xLJsFn9OS7t4P3vUiDIBu5t4NXs8jDCdHxA9DXR_q6ddWM. Also see the current Hawai‘i Volcanoes air quality map at https://www.nps.gov/havo/air-quality-alert.htm.

    For lava viewing at Halema‘uma‘u, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park is open 24 hours a day.

Fountaining lava fissures of the new eruption inside Halemaʻumaʻu taken by a USGS webcam. See the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory webcam at  https://www.nps.gov/havo/air-quality-alert.htm.

INVASIVE WILDLIFE OF THE PACIFIC ISLANDS IS THE AFTER DARK IN THE PARK 
Dr. Steve Hess
presentation this Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 7 p.m. in Kīlauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.
    Dr. Steven Hess will explain that the terrestrial biota of the Central Pacific is primarily defined by its degree of isolation. "At the center are the Hawaiian Islands, almost 4,000 km (2,480 miles) from the closest continental land mass. Millions of years of evolutionary isolation created beautiful and unique native ecosystems," says the invitation to the event. "However, the Central Pacific islands were suddenly besieged by alien rodents, carnivores, ungulates, reptiles and diseases."
   Hess, research biologist with the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, reveals how reversing the devastating effects of alien species has proven to be difficult, but limited successes have resulted in the dramatic recovery of native species. 
    The presentation is one of Hawai‘i Volcanoes’ ongoing After Dark in the Park programs and is co-sponsored by the Friends of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Free, but park entrance fees apply.


A HOME GAME FOR TROJANS GIRLS VOLLEYBALL is set for Monday evening at Herkes Kaʻū District Gym in Pāhala. The opponent is Kohala. Game time is 5 p.m.


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Saturday, September 09, 2023

Kaʻū News Briefs, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023

The Bon Dance is a Week Away
This Bon Dance enthusiast helps his granddaughter make a Hachimaki headband to wear at Pāhala Hongwanji Bon Dance. This year's ceremonies, food and Pāhala Taiko drumming are next Saturday, Sept. 16, with the opening service at 4 p.m., to be followed by music and the traditional dancing in the round. A mother and infant in the traditional dress in the background also enjoy the festivities to celebrate ancestors and the harvest, a long-held tradition in Japan that came to Hawai‘i with sugar workers moving here. Attendees will be able to make their headbands at no charge in the old Japanese School House on the grounds of the Hongwanji. Photo by Julia Neal

GOV. JOSH GREEN, M.D. TALKED ABOUT BEING A DOCTOR IN KAʻŪ on Saturday when he announced a new loan repayment program for the education of physicians and other healthcare professionals across the Hawaiian Islands. The Healthcare Education Loan Repayment Program is called HELP and Green's statement describes it as "aggressive and far-reaching." Hawai‘i/Pacific Basin Area Health Education Center joined Green to unveil the plan to address the growing shortages of physicians and other healthcare professionals in this state.
  Organizers of the new program estimate a shortage of about 4,000 healthcare professionals in Hawai‘i, most acutely affecting residents of rural areas and those with public insurance. The statewide shortage includes practitioners across medical, dental, and behavioral and mental health fields, with demand for primary care physicians, behavioral health providers, and particularly high demand for specialty physicians practicing in rural areas.
    To address the issue Hawai‘i Legislature appropriated $30 million for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 for the establishment of HELP. Licensed or certified for Hawai‘i, healthcare professionals, or those in training, may qualify for up to $50,000 in annual loan forgiveness in exchange for a two-year commitment to serve patients in Hawaiʻi.
    The Hawaiʻi/Pacific Basin Area Health Education Center administers the program, and applications are accessible on its website. Applications are accepted twice a year in October and April, and AHEC will disburse awards in January and July.
    The program is developed by Hawai‘i's John A. Burns School of Medicine, Healthcare Association of Hawai‘i, and state Department of Health.
    Green said, "This announcement is the result of many years' worth of effort. I'm thinking back to my time working with colleagues in the state legislature on this loan repayment program and other ways to resolve the shortage of healthcare providers, so it is very rewarding to see it come to fruition so generously funded,"
    The Governor noted that he came to Hawai‘i through a similar program, the National Health Service Corps, and served Kaʻū. 
    The new program builds on the decade-old, federally funded Hawaiʻi State Loan Repayment Program by reaching a larger group of healthcare professionals. In exchange for two years of full-time or half-time service in Hawaiʻi, the following types of healthcare professionals will qualify for loan repayments starting at $12,500 and capped at $50,000. The eligible amount varies depending on the profession, location of practice, and educational indebtedness. All must provide care to, or work for organizations that provide care to, at least 30 percent of patients who are publicly insured.
    Eligible professions include: Audiologist and Behavior analyst, Certified physician assistant, Certified substance abuse counselor, Chiropractor, Clinical laboratory director, Clinical laboratory specialist, Community service dental hygienist, Community service dentist, Cytotechnologist, Dental hygienist, Dentist, Emergency Medical Technician, Industrial psychologist, Licensed bachelor social worker, Licensed clinical social worker, Licensed marriage and family therapist, Licensed practical nurse, Licensed social worker, Medical assistant, Medical laboratory technician, Medical technologist, Mental health counselor, Midwife, Naturopathic physician, Nurse aide. Nurse anesthetist, Nursing home administrator, Occupational therapist, Occupational therapy assistant, Optometrist, Osteopathic physician and surgeon, Paramedic. Pharmacist, Physical therapist, Physical therapist assistant, Physician, Physician assistant, Podiatrist, Psychologist, Radiology technician, Registered Dietician, Registered nurse, Respiratory therapist, Speech pathologist, Surgical assistant, Surgical technician, Surgical technologist
The statement from the Governor says that the state expects HELP to improve recruitment and retention of providers serving vulnerable populations, as well as those in medically underserved areas of Hawaiʻi, while lessening the burden of large educational debt.
    Hawaiʻi-Pacific Basin AHEC Director Dr. Kelley Withy said, "The current federally funded and state-matched Hawaiʻi State Loan Repayment Program has one of the highest retention rates in the country with

65% of loan repayers continuing to practice in their health professional shortage area and underserved community sites, and 80% of program completers still practicing in Hawai‘i. Our program works, and we are grateful to the 2023 legislature for continuing the matching funds for this federal program that targets the highest shortage areas and specialties. However, we know there is a severe shortage of multiple physician specialties, worse on the neighboring islands and rural Oʻahu, as well as critical nursing, allied health and behavioral health shortages."
    Interim Dean of John A. Burns School of Medicine, Dr. Lee Buenconsejo-Lum, said "These shortages were most evident during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but continue today. HELP expands loan repayment eligibility to so many working hard to keep the people of Hawaiʻi healthy. We hope that reducing their debt burden will help keep these professionals working here, and will also encourage our JABSOM graduates and others with Hawaiʻi ties to return home to practice."
NPS Photo by Janice Wei
The announcement was made at AHEC's annual Workforce Summit at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Nearly 1,000 attended to brainstorm ideas to boost the number of physicians in Hawaiʻi. The statement said that many believe HELP will be the driving force in bringing medical professionals home.
    While HELP is available to all qualifying healthcare professionals, the Governor said he especially encourages medical and behavioral health professionals practicing in Maui to apply.
    For more information and to apply for HELP, visit the AHEC website or call (808) 692-1060.


THIS IS NATIONAL PARK SERVICE FASHION WEEK and Hawaiʻi Volcanoes posted that it is "recognizing the unique look and style of the nēnē, the world's rarest goose! With our mock magazine cover, we wanted to highlight that nēnē nesting season is almost here, time to be on the lookout for nēnē while driving island roads and never, ever feed nēnē."
       The cover celebrates their feathers that "will leave you breathless." The mock magazine cover shows two geese posing and looking sideways at each other. Headlines read: "Hawaiʻi Volcanoes Magazine, best feather ideas, FREE ʻŌhelo Berry Voucher, New for Nesting Season, Nēnē mate for life but fashion is forever."


Verbesina once consumed available habitat for albatross to nest throughout all the islands on Midway Atoll
FRIENDS OF MIDWAY ATOLL has documented more than a decade of working to eradicate an invasive plant to help protect the nesting grounds for Laysan Albatrosses. "You can see the tremendous change in Midway's landscape after 12 years of Verbesina eradication efforts. It took persistent removal and treatment to exhaust the seedbank, but Verbesina is no longer a dominant land cover on Eastern and Sand Islands!' See more at https://friendsofmidway.org/verbesina-on-midway-before-and-after/
    Also see a Midway Albatross story at http://kaunewsbriefs.blogspot.com/2023_09_05_archive.html.
The albatross' wings caught on the branches and dense vegetation
 blocked the breeze, creating oven-like conditions for chicks.
Photos from U.S. Fish & Wildlife

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Friday, September 08, 2023

Kaʻū News Briefs, Friday, Sept. 8, 2023

Trojan Defense players swarm to make a tackle at Kamehameha School. See more below. Photo by Mark Peters

HELICOPTERS COULDN'T FLY TO MAKE WATER DROPS ON FIRES AUG. 8. Bulldozers couldn't stay ahead of the flames to make firebreaks, and it wasn't just on Maui. Hawai‘i County Fire Chief Kazuo Todd gave a report via Zoom on Thursday saying that the fires fought along the Kohala Coast on Aug. 8 were the toughest ever for firefighters. He noted that the winds were too high for helicopters to make water drops. Flames outpaced bulldozers.
    At the same time, two fires on that day were put out in Kaʻū by local firefighters. Todd credited the success of putting out seven Hawai‘i Island fires on Aug. 8 to county firefighters around the island and also to volunteer fire companies.

Hawai‘i County Fire Chief Kazuo Todd said that
Hawai‘i Island is the only county in the state with
volunteer firefighters, who along with county,
National Park and military assistance helped 
quell the fires of Aug. 8.
    He said that Hawai‘i is the only county in the state with volunteer firefighters, which vastly increases the ability to fight fires. He said this county has more firefighting resources than any other Neighbor Island and is just short of O‘ahu with its 44 fire stations.
    The Hawai‘i Island Fire Chief also credited the state Department of Forestry & Wildlife, National Park Service, and U.S. military's fire department at Pōhakuloa Training Area. He said they all contributed to the success in quelling the Aug. 8 fires on Hawai‘i Island.
    By the end of Aug. 8, one big warehouse was destroyed near Mauna Kea beach and guests at the hotel there were told to shelter in place. No residences nor visitor accommodations burned down but seven buildings were damaged. Residential communities just north of Kawaihae were evacuated.
    Todd reported wind gusting 82 mph in Kawaihae in the late afternoon of Aug. 8, plus gusts above 50 mph in South Kohala. He said wind pushed around the firefighters, some of them holding onto the fire trucks to keep them from falling. He said the high winds made it difficult to keep straight water hoses going to the fires. He said the fires in Kohala were probably electrical and not arson or other cause, but final determination is yet to be made.

FRIDAY, SEPT. 8 MARKED ONE MONTH AFTER WILDFIRES TORE THROUGH LĀHAINĀ AND UPCOUNTRY Maui. On Thursday, Sen. Mazie Hirono took to the U.S. Senate floor to give an overview, in remembrance of those who lost their lives. She highlighted the federal government’s response, and reiterated her commitment to fighting for resources needed for recovery.
    “This disaster did not simply impact a collection of numbers or statistics, it impacted a community of people, tight-knit and proud—business owners, who served as stewards of family-owned shops and restaurants passed down through generations; immigrants who came to Maui in search of a better life for themselves and their families; firefighters, who raced into horrific, toxic conditions to try and save the town they loved, even as many of their own homes burned to the ground mere miles away; and so many more who called Lāhainā home,” said Hirono.
Hawai‘i Sen. Mazie Hirono took to the U.S. Senate floor on Thursday to ask for more help for 
victims of the firestorm disaster in Lahaina and Upcountry Maui. Image from C-Span

    Hirono also condemned the spread of disinformation on social media, saying, “Mr. President, at a time of grief and loss, residents have been subjected to disinformation on social media, likely coordinated by foreign government entities, to discourage residents from reaching out to FEMA for disaster assistance and disinformation that sowed distrust in the federal government,” Hirono said, “It is an all-hands-on-deck effort to combat this kind of disinformation and make sure survivors can access federal support.”
    Hirono emphasized "the robust response of the Federal Family of Agencies—including FEMA, SBA, and dozens of others—in the days following the fire. Within days of the fires starting, FEMA—working with the governor, mayor, and local entities—was able to get thousands of survivors into hotel rooms, Airbnbs, and other short-term shelters. To date, more than $50 million in federal assistance to individuals has already been approved,” She pointed out that “Federal personnel have also been critical to the search and rescue efforts, coming from around the country to help search through the rubble and identify the remains of those lost.”
   Hirono noted that "initial estimates suggest the fires destroyed nearly 3,000 structures in Lāhainā, almost 90% of which were residential. It also leveled roughly 700 businesses on and around Lāhainā’s historic Front Street. Tragically, the fires have claimed 115 lives to date, with some 385 people still unaccounted for. These numbers are devastating and reflect the pain and anguish Hawai‘i is feeling.
   She also pointed to Lāhainā's history. "As the one-time capital of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, Lāhainā holds great cultural and historic significance for the Native Hawaiian community. For some families, their roots in Lāhainā date back more than a century, with homes passed down from generation to generation. Others came from elsewhere, captivated by Lāhainā’s beauty and charm. And before the fires, Lāhainā was a bustling seaside town that welcomed thousands of visitors every month. But in mere moments, all of that was destroyed as 80 miles-per-hour winds, fueled by a hurricane 500 miles away, propelled the fire through the town with unimaginable speed and fury.
    "The devastation is difficult to put into words, as is the trauma this community is experiencing. Front Street, once vibrant with the sounds of music and revelers in the air, is now eerily quiet—the only sound to be heard is often the clanging of twisted metal in the wind. At the hotels where survivors are staying, I met parents afraid to send their children to school, not wanting them out of their sight. I met a woman who escaped the fire with just a backpack of belongings—a backpack she now takes everywhere with her, refusing to take it off her back. And I met hotel workers and others, especially a health worker who said that, weeks after the fires, some residents and workers were so traumatized, they didn’t even want to come out of their rooms."
    Hirono said that initial estimates calculate the damage to property alone from these fires is upwards of $5 billion—estimates for rebuilding Lāhainā are more than double that. "Rebuilding will take time, resources, and a continuity of effort. That’s why I’m so grateful for the strong response of the full family of federal agencies—more than 25 of which are on the ground on Maui with over 1,000 personnel. From FEMA and SBA, to HHS, HUD, DOD, and so many others, the federal family responded with speed to meet the immediate needs of those impacted." she said.
    Within days of the fires starting, said Hirono, FEMA—working with the governor, mayor, and local entities—was able to get thousands of survivors into hotel rooms, AirBNBs, and other short-term shelters. "To date, more than $50 million in federal assistance to individuals has already been
approved. But we know that this is just the beginning. Federal personnel have also been critical to the search and rescue efforts, coming from around the country to help search through the rubble and identify the remains of those lost."
    Hirono noted that when President Joe Biden visited last month, he made a commitment that the federal government would be there for as long as it takes to help Lāhainā recover and rebuild as the community envisions. "The $4 billion in additional FEMA funding the President requested late last week is an important down payment on that promise. This funding will help ensure FEMA has the resources it needs to continue its critical disaster relief work—not just on Maui, but in other communities impacted by disasters all across our country. I hope that it will pass with strong bipartisan support, as has long been the case for disaster relief funding. But we know, as I said before, this is just the beginning." 


Trojan. Photo Joy Marie Ridgely
KAʻŪ TROJANS TRAVELLED TO KAMEHAMEHA'S HOME TURF in Kea'au on Thursday. The Warriors beat Kaʻū 49 to six. 
    The next game for the Trojans is next Saturday, Sept. 16 at home, playing the Honoka‘a Dragons. It is the first of three weekly home games on Saturdays at 1 p.m.
     Key stats to date for this season for Trojan Offense include Adahdiya Ellis-Reyes completing 31 of 69 passes for 611 yards, with five interceptions and seven touchdowns.
    In Receiving, TJ Kuahuia-Faafia made 19 catches for 368 yards had six touchdowns. Ocean Nihipali-Sesson made 15 catches for 190 yards and one touchdown.
    In Rushing, Ocean Nihipali-Sesson racked up 60 carries for 269 yards and two touchdowns. Adahdiya Ellis-Reyes made 29 carries for 124 yards.
      For Defense, La‘a Kajiwara-Ke made 23 tackles, Dominic Nurial-Dacalio 22, Vladamir Fedoruk 16, Ocean Nihipali-Sesson 15, Adahdiya Ellis-Reyes 13.
    Keaka McDonnell made two interceptions and Jaestin Karasuda one.
Kaʻū Trojans traveled to Kea‘au on Thursday to take on the Kamehameha Warriors.
Photo by Mark Peters

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THE TILTMETER IS THE FOCUS OF VOLCANO WATCH this week, the column written by USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory research geophysicist Ingrid Johanson. 
     Measuring how a volcano deforms in response to moving magma is one of the cornerstones of volcano monitoring. Instrumentation includes a number of newer, satellite-based methods but another important instrument has been around a lot longer: the tiltmeter.
    Tilt data was the first geodetic data collected by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and continues to be incredibly important both for monitoring and basic research in volcano behavior.
    In the early 20th century, scientists were only beginning to recognize that volcanic eruptions (and earthquakes) were accompanied by “topographic changes” (as they were called at the time). In Japan, one of the forebearers of seismology, Dr. Fusakichi Omori, realized that the boom arm on his seismometer was affected by ground tilt and that this annoyance was important data.
    In 1917, Dr. Thomas Jaggar began tracking tilt changes at Hawaiian volcanoes. At first, by looking at the deflections of the HVO’s Omori and Bosch-Omori seismometers. Later, by constructing specially designed “clinoscopes.” These provided a rough idea of the amount of tilt over the span of a day to a week.
Graph of tilting at Uēkahuna bluff—at the summit of Kīlauea—in a direction toward and away from Halemʻaumʻau, collected by a water tube tiltmeter (black) and an electronic tiltmeter (grey). Major intrusions and eruptions are marked by blue and pink arrows respectively. USGS plot
    In the 1950s, HVO scientist Dr. Jerry Eaton designed an improved tiltmeter using water. This apparatus provided a precise tilt measurement to be used to track daily or even hourly tilt. The “water tube tiltmeters” allowed HVO scientists to track the movement of Kīlauea’s summit through several eruptions, providing a continuous record of inflation and deflation.
A water tube tiltmeter: The tiltmeter is read by looking into the portal on
each pot and adjusting the sight until two pins appear to touch. In fact, one of
the pins is a reflection, so having the pins almost touch establishes the
 exact water level within the pot. The difference in water level gives the tilt,
 and repeated measurements give changes in tilt over time. USGS photo
   The water tube tiltmeter consists of three “pots” of water connected by tubes such that the water can freely flow between them. One pot is placed in the center, and the other two are placed east and north of the center pot. The water in the tubes will always seek to be level, but when the ground tilts and moves the pots up or down, it will look like the water level is moving down or up. By reading the depth of the water in each pot, one can work out how much the ground has tilted since the last reading.
    Water tube tilt data was especially valuable because it could be collected regularly to form a continuous time series. This means data was collected whether it seemed important at the moment or not. This kind of continuous record facilitates discoveries that wouldn’t be possible if data was only collected during eruptions.
    In particular, the water tube tiltmeters showed cycles of steep inflationary tilt between eruptions and then sudden deflation as eruptions drained magma chambers. However, once Puʻuʻōʻō began erupting on Kīlauea’s middle East Rift Zone in 1983, these cycles became much more subdued.
    In the early 1970s, electronic tiltmeters began to be installed around Kīlauea. These instruments are installed in boreholes about 16 feet (5 meters) deep, such that they are protected from the weather, and can provide tilt measurements down to a fraction of a microradian every minute.
    After the end of the Puʻuʻōʻō eruption in 2018, the character of tilt at Kīlauea’s summit
changed again. Electronic tiltmeters began to record steep inflationary tilt, not too different from the rates observed by the water tube tiltmeter in the 1950s–1970s. Major eruptions, similar to Kīlauea Iki or Maunaulu—which resulted in large summit deflations—have not occurred recently, but the similarity of the current records to those from the 1950s-1970s is yet another sign that Kīlauea is not too different now from how it was before the 2018 eruption.
    This means that the data collected, and the lessons learned about Kīlauea’s plumbing, are still applicable today. Scientists can still use Kīlauea’s past behavior to make forecasts about future behavior and test out new ideas for what may have happened in the past.
    For example, currently, the tiltmeter at Uēkahuna Bluff (UWE) is not showing major tilt changes, but another tiltmeter south of Kīlauea’s caldera (SDH) has shown a steep increase over the past couple weeks. By looking back at past records, scientists recognize that this is likely due to magma accumulation in a South Caldera reservoir, which occurs intermittently; most recently in 2015 and 2021.
    The long and faithful recording of tilt at Kīlauea gives scientists a boost to understanding current processes and could facilitate new discoveries about the past.­ 
    Volcano Activity Updates; Kīlauea is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert level is ADVISORY. Over the past week, elevated earthquake activity continued in an area south of Kīlauea’s summit caldera. Kīlauea summit tiltmeters suggest that the area south of the caldera is inflating—independent of the usual deformation source inside the caldera. Within the caldera, there has been minor net inflation over the past week. A sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission rate of approximately 75 tonnes per day was measured on August 24.
   Mauna Loa is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert Level is at NORMAL.
   Webcams show no signs of activity on Mauna Loa. Seismicity remains low. Summit ground deformation rates indicate slow inflation as magma replenishes the reservoir system following the recent eruption. SO2 emission rates are at background levels.
   No earthquakes were reported felt in the Hawaiian Islands during the past week.

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