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Kilauea eruption still far from homes, ground view

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Kilauea Volcano continues to erupt in two areas, but the action can only be seen from the air, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said Saturday.

On the volcano’s eastern flank, the latest flow, called Kahaualea 2, retreated from its front end, which burned dense forest northeast of Puu Oo Crater. On Friday, the flow’s farthest activity was about a half-mile behind the front reached on April 9.

The flow has been erratic over the past few months and hasn’t moved more than one mile since first stalling in November, the Observatory said. It began in May.

At the summit, gas emissions remained high with bits of lava called Pele’s hair being spit up from the lava lake inside Halemaumau Crater. The lava lake, about 520 feet across, dropped about 150 feet below the crater floor.

The Kahaualea 2 flow is not threatening any residential areas. But the Observatory warned that near-vent areas could erupt or collapse without warning and lethal levels of sulfur dioxide may be present within a mile of a vent.

A distant glow from the active flows can be seen from the county viewing area in Kalapana and the end of Chain of Craters Road in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Viewing information can be found at http://www.nps.gov/havo/planyourvisit/lava2.htm.

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