Editorial: Pele puts on a show

The greatest show on Earth — the making of new earth — is happening in our own backyard, with Madame Pele granting us front-row seats without any major threats to life and property. For now.

Late Sunday, Mauna Loa on Hawaii island became the world’s largest active volcano, awakening spectacularly after a 38-year dormancy with lava spewing down rift zones that burned the landscape and lit the night sky with dramatic rivers of orange-red magma.

The great news is that all of this is occurring — so far — away from populated hubs and structures. The main concern, and it’s a notable one, was that the lava’s path would take it right over Daniel K. Inouye Highway (DKI), aka Saddle Road, a major thoroughfare between the island’s Hilo and Kona sides. Other routes do exist, via the northern Hamakua route or the longer Kau southern path, but the hours added to daily commutes for work and other business would be problematic.

Luckily, as of Friday, flows that came within about 3 miles of DKI have slowed significantly, to the point of near-stagnation. And if Mauna Loa trends hold, the worst threat from this eruption has passed, allowing residents and travelers to breathe a big sigh of relief.

Still, there exists the real danger of folks stopping illegally on the highway, pausing or parking on the shoulder to watch the stunning show. After an accident Tuesday night, fortunately not serious, Hawaii County and state Department of Transportation officials rightly put out the serious message that stopping on DKI is illegal and would draw a $1,000 fine.

Further, kudos to officials for opening a traffic hazard mitigation route to handle the throngs descending on the area to view the eruption. Opened Thursday to help relieve growing safety concerns from increased traffic, the 4.5-mile one-way route uses the old saddle road to allow people to park and view for up to 90 minutes.

The Big Island’s economy surely will benefit from this once-in-a-generation event — not only the eruption of Mauna Loa but also the ongoing activity since 2018 of Kilauea volcano, both of which are visible from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

Remarking on Mauna Loa’s spectacular-yet-safe week, “it’s been an enjoyable eruption so far,” volcanology professor Julia Hammer aptly said on Friday’s Star-Advertiser “Spotlight Hawaii” webcast.

As long as Mauna Loa’s eruption unfolds as it has, it is indeed an ideal situation — a chance to experience nature’s most primordial show, without the danger and destruction that we all know is very possible.