Concern for Leilani Estates as lava moves eastward underground

[WestCoastGal]

9 minutes ago, bgl said:

I did post photos of the Marojejya garden - sort of. The two posts I added right after your post "Glad you're getting back". I walked up Moku Street as far as I felt it was safe to do so, and as soon as I had done so the entire area between me and my parked truck began to fill up with gases so I made a VERY quick exit. Even if that hadn't happened I didn't really feel it was safe to walk closer to the Marojejya property. And the property owner of the corner of Malama and Pomaikai does NOT spend the night there, and he was very specific about that. He also seemed resigned to the fact that the house may be gone soon. Lots of cracks on all sides of the house and some of them are DEEP. Can't even see the bottom. Again, I wasn't about to spend too much time there... At my house, only 3/4 of a mile away (and I am also on Pomaikai, but north of Leilani) - totally different and absolutely surreal. Sun is shining and it's a very nice day. Every now and then you hear a very large boom, I believe from Fissure #17 some 2 miles away, and on a few occasions today we had some minor earthquakes. But ZERO damage from the 6.9 the other week.

Gottcha. I was thinking maybe your were also posting an "after" photo of the palms there. So when you said the palm house is still standing but beyond a point of no return was it because the house was also damaged of just that the area was so badly affected, there's no way you could see living there. Had wondered when things settled down they could have put in a driveway in a different location. It really was one of my favorite landscaped yards I've seen from google maps street view. 

Curious is Leilani Estates an HOA like we have here in California and where I live? Just wondering who's responsible for roads repair etc. within the community in situations like this. 

[bgl]

I know that house is still standing but I had no way of determining damage, if any. And even if it's completely undamaged and possible to live in again not so sure that the owners are willing to chance it. I know others with houses south of Leilani Avenue, whose houses are intact but they are not willing to move back in, no matter what. Even for me, living as close as I do, I can't really put myself mentally in their place but the knowledge that an eruption could happen any time right below your house is pretty powerful, I'm sure. It could happen right here on my property as well but because my area is untouched I don't have that same sense of potential impending disaster. And yes, we have an HOA here in Leilani Estates. $110 per acre per year. A dozen years ago they tacked on an additional $100 per year per acre to resurface all the streets. That went on for a handful of years until they had enough money. All the cross streets to Leilani Avenue are privately owned (by Leilani Estates Community Association). The current scenario is clearly a bit different from just your average resurfacing job, so who knows, maybe the county or the state will come in and do something. But probably not any time soon. This all needs to quiet down first, and who knows how long that could take.

[WestCoastGal]

While trying to see if there's any live feed set up for Fissure 17 area again, found this video in the meantime. Kind of cool to watch.

For anyone thinking about when magma meets water, here's a YT video from National Geographic on their experiments:

 

[WestCoastGal]

Mileka Lincoln just posted this instagram alert with in the hour about cracks on Hwy 11 on the Hilo side HVNP (Mile markers 28 & 29) following this morning's earthquake. In the previous instagram post she made on the was to investigate it was described as the Hilo side of the park between Volcano Village and the park entrance. Not sure how traveled that is since the park is closed but felt worth posting here.

 

[WestCoastGal]

Check out Lava News' recent Monday FB post with video of Leilani and Pohoiki. That's one frightening crevice . And as Scott saw today when he was with Bill, there's lava near the surface around this area.

Just in the way of a reminder of the intensity this area is capable of in case you didn't see it before, Lava News posted this video of F13 (between 4 & 5) back on May 8.

 

 

[WestCoastGal]

BTW Lava News was filming at the house at Kapoko Farms on Hwy 132 over Fissure 17 & 18. If anyone is on FB (I'm not) could someone ask him if there's still going to be a live feed from there and where to see it and let us know? Having no luck locating a feed. Thanks!

We watched some of the coverage on a live feed on the 14th and then ate dinner last night watching WXChasing's feed. Civil Beat and WXChasing have left so missing all of the great coverage. Much thanks to all that made it possible, especially the home owners who made it possible.

BTW in watching the footage Lava News had posted on his FB page below (from 5/14), at around 5:54 in the video he points out where Shane Turpin and Damian (Barrios I'm guessing) are/were staying. He said they had projectile lava hit their place's roof and had to put out a fire. Yikes! Really beautiful camera resolution on the below video. WXChasing said that his camera was 1080 and the difference is really noticeable. So easy to get spoiled and I didn't think I'd care. BTW Lava News does a wonderful job pointing out the whole layout of these fissures and the surrounding area as he narrates with Civil Beat there with him.

 

[WestCoastGal]

If you've never been to Kilauea Summit and seen Halema'uma'u crater, you might enjoy Scott (ApuaHawaiiTours) sharing this video of him and his two dogs when they walked the floor of it back on 11/1/17. We walked Kilauea Iki but not Halema'uma'u so found this fascinating. Of course today this is a completely different scene and trying to peer down into it would be some sight if it were even possible.

 

Has anyone heard anything about changes in Kilauea Iki's lake? I know it had erupted back in 1959. For those who haven't been there Kilauea Iki sits right on one side of the Kilauea summit crater. I would have thought the two might have been feed from the same source so one would affect the other.

The walk down Iki's switchback to the lava lake floor and then across the lake (steaming in spots then) was kind of frightening experience knowing what was below you and exhilerating too. We got there in the morning and as cool as the air was we were pretty warm walking across it in no time due to the steam. As we approached the side closest to the big crater, the lava was broken up, mounded, tilted, very irregular and the lava was really black, just surreal and it made me feel like I was on some strange distant planet. Hopefully people will be able to return to the park in the not too distant future and experience what a unique place it is.

[WestCoastGal]

Latest map generated on fissures. They've update the map to show active and inactive fissures.

 

[Moose]

 

 

 

I've looked and have not been able to locate the latest disposition of the lava lake. Debbie's outstanding collection of information has me spoiled. Clicking on Palm Talk I can find the latest information as opposed to spending an inordinate amount of time meandering through the cloud.  

Edited May 17, 2018 by Moose

[WestCoastGal]

USGS posted 2 updates to Wednesday. I think people should read both of them (2:35 & 4:47pm). The second one, earlier, says that the floor of the Kilauea Crater has fallen 3 feet. So in addition to the Halema'uma'u droppimg down to near water table level, now the surrounding surface floor lake is droppimg too? Havimg a hard time picturing the physics of how this all works. To me this sounds like a huge event. Sorry I asked earlier about Kilauea Iki's level. I never even considered the rest of the summit crater being able to drop. Guess I assume it was in a semi-solid form and more or less cooled down.

https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/status.html

 

The HawaiiNewsNow reporter also had this to say (look for the statement about some lava beimg found in the ash that was ejected during one of the eruptions yesterday):

https://www.facebook.com/milekalincoln.hnn/videos/1782039831854903/

 

 

Edited May 17, 2018 by WestCoastGal
Added Mileka Lincoln's fb post

[Moose]

7 minutes ago, WestCoastGal said:

USGS posted 2 updates to Wednesday. I think people should read both of them (2:35 & 4:47pm). The second one, earlier, says that the floor of the Kilauea Crater has fallen 3 feet. So in addition to the Halema'uma'u droppimg down to near water table level, now the surrounding surface floor lake is too? Havimg a hard time picturing the physics of how this all works. To me this sounds like a huge event. Sorry I asked earlier about Kilauea Iki's level. I never even considered the rest of the summit crater being able to drop. Guess I assume it was In a semi-solid form and more or less cooled down.

https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/status.html

I'm not a volcanologist, just a guy who fixes elevators. Not sure of the significance of three foot drop of the entire caldera, but the mass involved coupled with my understanding of gravity does not create a positive scenario in my brain.

[WestCoastGal]

59 minutes ago, Moose said:

 

 

 

I've looked and have not been able to locate the latest disposition of the lava lake. Debbie's outstanding collection of information has me spoiled. Clicking on Palm Talk I can find the latest information as opposed to spending an inordinate amount of time meandering through the cloud.  

Moose without looking back myself if you go to the photo section: https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/multimedia_chronology.html  and seach down to May 12 I think that might be the latest info they gave about the lake level in Halema'um'a. Do recall them mentioning a well, a short distance but down slope from the crater, and referencing that water table level and them having to make best guestimates on where the water table would be for the summit. They came up with an earliest date of May 11 as when it could start seeping into the chamber and that's why they decided to shut the park down then. The eruptions happened a few days later. 

Also btw if you haven't seen the 2 ft. Parking lot rock that was discovered after the eruption, it's near the top of the photos. I did not post that just referenced it.

One more comment before heading to sleep, the USGS Alert link mentioned again today that they sense magma movement and the earthquakes are still clustered in the same area. Still blocked and pressure building? Looking at the red lava seen in Scott's video/s and I think Lava Man's just today, and increased steaming at older fissures near Pohoiki, Kahukai and Leilani, there's something going on there for sure. Bo's photos of Pomaikai @ Malama too (sorry about spelling, typing on laptop in the dark while my husband is asleep). The road and ground separations all very recent, all look horrible. Deep, wide cracks too. Something I think anyone who maybe only came to this last page to read may not be aware of and think they should be.

[Moose]

11 minutes ago, WestCoastGal said:

Moose without looking back myself if you go to the photo section: https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/multimedia_chronology.html  and seach down to May 12 I think that might be the latest info they gave about the lake level in Halema'um'a. Do recall them mentioning a well, a short distance but down slope from the crater, and referencing that water table level and them having to make best guestimates on where the water table would be for the summit. They came up with an earliest date of May 11 as when it could start seeping into the chamber and that's why they decided to shut the park down then. The eruptions happened a few days later. 

Also btw if you haven't seen the 2 ft. Parking lot rock that was discovered after the eruption, it's near the top of the photos. I did not post that just referenced it.

Yes, lots of force had to be exerted on that mass to move it that distance. Don't believe we have seen the "worse" of steam driven projectiles as of yet. Potential for some hazardous material get expelled out of the lava lake depression is eminent.

[WestCoastGal]

Did not see or listen to who Mileka Lincoln spoke to that said there was lava ejected but if accurate statement that would have come from way below at this point. Well leaving you to ponder it if you're staying up later than me .

[WestCoastGal]

Morning all. It's raining in Puna right now. I know because I can hear it and kind of see through the clouds/VOG and hear the eruptions in the background. The rooster is crowing. ***WXChasing's LIVE feed at Hwy 132 and Fissure 17 is up again at:***

https://livestormchasing.com/map

if you are new to this and want to keep a watch and listen, simpliest way to see it is find Hawaii on the map, WXChasing (Brandon Clement) is the only green dot on the map, and click on it. Then hit play arrow. Sounds like thunder but we know better--explosions from the fissure/s. I can also hear slapping sound of lava hitting the ground when it lands. If you tune in and only see a gray screen, don't worry the feed camera is working just fine.

I was listening to an early morning drive video Scott Wiggers posted this a.m. and nothing much to report from within. He has a tour today so hoping for everyone's sake the rain moves on. I know it's typical to get downpours and the see rainbows but not sure how long it rains in general. It's only 6am HST now so still very early.

Big thanks to LiveStormChasing and whoever else was involved in making this happen! Excited to have a live feed back and feel connect to all of you down in Leilani Estates. 

[bgl]

Good morning Debbie (and everybody else!)  Your comment "not sure how long it rains in general" made me laugh, which is always a good thing, especially at 6 am!  Well, let's see that would be anywhere between five seconds and a couple of days!  I am in Hilo right now but will leave shortly and drive out to LE and spend the day at my place (and possibly the night as well - will see how things go), and my plan was to go out for a morning walk and bring my camera and mask. I may have to modify that plan, depending on the weather. More later!

[Funkthulhu]

My geology degrees keep buzzing, I suppose I should post so I get notifications on this thread...

(HOLY CRAP THIS IS SO FREAKIN COOL)

[WestCoastGal]

Checked Wunderground for Pahoa and it looks like a rainy day and at present they're not showing any real Sunshine dry days until tomorrow at 1pm. Looks like fairly light rain moving south to north but covering the southern coast. 

The Live camera view has cleared up quite a bit and the morning is getting lighter. Definitely seeing the eruption clouds, hearing the sound claps and lava sounds and have even seen some red lava shoot up (left on camera). Will be looking forward to check out any new maps posted for that area. 

I checked Lava Man's fb page and see that he activated his videos again so they are now appearing back in my posts on the last page or two.  From comments many people were expressing they hoped the live feed would be back and he had commented that some people (not specified) weren't happy about them. I'm thinking maybe they encourage more people to try to get to the area for their own camera work. Officials were mentioned in several places I saw online that this area (17-?) was on private land. Anyway doesn't seem like anyone on Lava Man's site is aware of LiveStormChasing.com being up, and if you have a fb account would nice if someone dropped a mention there. So many people have been following the feeds out of general curiosity and having relatives/friends in the Puna area. Here's Lava News' fb page link. Thanks!  https://www.facebook.com/lavanews/  **Actually hold off on that. The feed just was lost. Went to refresh it and now seeing the following message: Chaser (Brandon Clement) is offline but their location is updating. They may be live at some point in the future. Crap! Let's hope...and from Pahoa.

Edited May 17, 2018 by WestCoastGal
updated info as Live Feed went down!

[Mats]

And life goes on as usual at the Volcano Golf & Country Club...

 

[WestCoastGal]

Just another day on the volcano! God that cloud looks so ominous. 

[Moose]

11 minutes ago, Mats said:

And life goes on as usual at the Volcano Golf & Country Club...

 

Bo plays golf?  Is that him with the club in his hand?

[Dave-Vero]

Hawaii News Now is saying this morning's summit explosion wasn't the big steam explosion that's been expected.  But ashfall is a problem, including offshore.  Plume height not yet fully determined, seems at least 30,000 ft.  Fissures 13 and 17 are active.  Earthquakes continue.  They're all very shallow, meaning they're felt more strongly than would be the case for deeper ones.

 

Meanwhile, in Orlando, a Disney parade's fire-breathing dragon caught fire.

 

 

[WestCoastGal]

If you are on the ground and wondering what military assistance is being apportioned to Puna, thought I'd post this. Video from  Big Island Video News from yesterday about Gov. Ige's request to DOD for dual-status Command that was approved. General Kenneth Hara with Joint Task Force Five-O was nominated for dual-status commander for the emergency in Puna. He has the authority to command both Title 10 active duty forces and Title 32 National Guard forces. Some of the missions they are anticipating include: search and rescue, emergency evac, debris clearance, and security.

Alot of this is talk is military/National Guard language and anyone who served would have a better understanding. It appears that there are currently 1200 soldiers training at Pohakuloa and 9 UH-60 helicopters (blackhawks). No chinooks. The challenge for him is knowing what is the population that they need to evacuate by air. If the roads are open and much of the population has evacuated, they may not need airsupport. Asked about the current status on full-time forces, he said he has 133 National Guard on the Big Island working this emergency. 

When asked by a reporter to clarify what area of evacuations they might see, he responded by indicating Hwy. 130, 132, 137 being cut off and isolated from the community. It would be driven by the County asking for their help. Pressed on numbers, he said they were told to plan for about 1000 but there's still a self-sufficient population that may decide to stay in place.

[WestCoastGal]

Sen. Mazie Hirono is speaking in this Big Island Video News broadcast (believe this is from the congressional hearings going on right now) on why Net Neutrality is vital to everyone from people communicating with loved ones to times of emergency like Kauai's flooding to what Puna is experiencing now.  

 

[bgl]

No, Moose, I wouldn't stoop to playing golf!  Drove from Hilo out to Pahoa a little while ago, getting here right around 7 am. 50 minutes ago. And forget a walk today. The entire area is blanketed with horrendous vog, with just a fairly light rain. Vog was heavy all over Pahoa, some three miles away from LE. And there are two checkpoints to get into LE - first at the traffic light near Pahoa (intersection of Hwy 130 and 132) and then a second one as you enter Leilani Estates on Leilani Avenue from Highway 130. Yesterday morning both were heavily manned and I was required to show ID at both. This morning I just cruised through both of them.  There was police and National Guard presence at the 130/132 intersection but nobody was manning the checkpoint. Entering LE, that checkpoint had NOBODY manning it.  So, a walk is out of the question, even though I am perfectly OK in my house with all windows closed. I took a handful of photos as I was driving into LE a little while ago. Here's the intersection of Kumakahi & Malama Street (looking south of course) with my old palm garden on the corner (left hand side). Vog was THICK, and it's even more visible in the second photo where I have turned left onto Malama and I'm looking east with the Pomaikai connection in the far distance.

[bgl]

And here's where Malama connects with Pomaikai, looking east. First photo was taken half an hour ago and the second photo from yesterday morning - just to highlight the difference in conditions in just 24 hours (and I have found out that it can actually change in a matter of minutes).

[bgl]

And same thing here, 24 hours apart (well, almost): looking south on Moku Street a little while ago (first photo) and roughly the same view yesterday morning.

[WestCoastGal]

The recent evacuations of residents living in houses in subdivisions built in volcanic hazard zones has prompted questions from people as to why developers were able to build there. This 5/14 article from Honolulu Civil Beat (who gave us some of the early live feed) provides some of the background on this. Interesting read, "Big Island: How Land Schemes Turned Lava Fields Into Subdivisions".

Occasionally you see people ask online "can't they do something to stop the lava flow?" and thought this other article from Honolulu Civil Beat on "The Time They Bombed Mauna Loa and Other Lava-Stopping Schemes" was interesting as well.

[bgl]

And finally (for now anyway), three photos of my property and house taken moments ago. And we just now (a minute ago) experienced a pretty good jolt. We had a handful of decent sized earthquakes yesterday as well, but nothing of concern and certainly no damage.

[WestCoastGal]

Good to see the house looking so good . Looks like your home isn't built on reinforced slab concrete like here where I live (earthquake country). Do you think you feel the earth movement more because of that?

[bgl]

6 minutes ago, WestCoastGal said:

Good to see the house looking so good . Looks like your home isn't built on reinforced slab concrete like here where I live (earthquake country). Do you think you feel the earth movement more because of that?

Yeah, it's called "post-and-pier" and my preferred way of having my house built. My previous one as well as this one. Not sure how it would affect the movement during an earthquake even though it would seem to make sense that there's more sense of movement in a post-and-pier built house, but maybe also more flexibility in the structure. That's a total guess! 

EDIT - so there's a crawl space underneath the entire structure. Maybe 4 ft high or so. Some houses have MUCH more than that.

[cm05]

Sounds scary and exciting all at once.

[Moose]

26 minutes ago, WestCoastGal said:

The recent evacuations of residents living in houses in subdivisions built in volcanic hazard zones has prompted questions from people as to why developers were able to build there. This 5/14 article from Honolulu Civil Beat (who gave us some of the early live feed) provides some of the background on this. Interesting read, "Big Island: How Land Schemes Turned Lava Fields Into Subdivisions".

Occasionally you see people ask online "can't they do something to stop the lava flow?" and thought this other article from Honolulu Civil Beat on "The Time They Bombed Mauna Loa and Other Lava-Stopping Schemes" was interesting as well.

Come on Debbie - they build millions of homes in hurricane prone areas. It's all a crap shoot. When is our time coming?

[WestCoastGal]

Hey @Moose apart from the threat of earthquakes, wild fires in the hills/mts around here (seen one on each side over the last few years), we also have dams in the area that are being retrofitted ...so there's been the possibility of being wiped out by a dam break/flood. We don't have fire ants here but we do have black widow spiders and tarantulas (just looks scary) and there are rattlesnakes on the mountain trails as well as small kitties (bobcats) and their bigger cousin, the mountain lion. When our property was being developed there was a big cat that got on top of the construction trailer and caused some excitement inside. Kind of rare to hear about them in our developed neighborhood now but they are in the nearby hills and come down into the subdivisions on occasion or go after animals on people's farm property. If I really wanted to be a debbie downer I could mention that one of the planes flying into SJC airport could fall out of the sky on top of us . When we lived in Sunnyvale there was actually a tornado that touched down and tore up some roofs 2-3 miles from us. I actually was looking out my kitchen window and saw the spout! We lived in the midwest with tornadoes and thought we had left that behind for earthquakes. I was pretty shocked. Still love living where we do for the weather, etc. Probably no "perfect" place so enjoy and make the best of where you are. If we were retired we'd probably have a house in Puna if not elsewhere on the island. Loved Tasmania as well. Florida's too hot and humid for me but we have relatives in Florida and Hawaii.

[Moose]

7 minutes ago, WestCoastGal said:

Hey @Moose apart from the threat of earthquakes, wild fires in the hills/mts around here (seen one on each side over the last few years), we also have dams in the area that are being retrofitted ...so there's been the possibility of being wiped out by a dam break/flood. We don't have fire ants here but we do have black widow spiders and tarantulas (just looks scary) and there are Fort Myers. rattlesnakes on the mountain trails as well as small kitties (bobcats) and their bigger cousin, the mountain lion. When our property was being developed there was a big cat that got on top of the construction trailer and caused some excitement inside. Kind of rare to hear about them in our developed neighborhood now but they are in the nearby hills and come down into the subdivisions on occasion or go after animals on people's farm property. If I really wanted to be a debbie downer I could mention that one of the planes flying into SJC airport could fall out of the sky on top of us . When we lived in Sunnyvale there was actually a tornado that touched down and tore up some roofs 2-3 miles from us. I actually was looking out my kitchen window and saw the spout! We lived in the midwest with tornadoes and thought we had left that behind for earthquakes. I was pretty shocked. Still love living where we do for the weather, etc. Probably no "perfect" place so enjoy and make the best of where you are. If we were retired we'd probably have a house in Puna if not elsewhere on the island. Loved Tasmania as well. Florida's too hot and humid for me but we have relatives in Florida and Hawaii.

Exactly. Houston area got hit last year. Then south Florida got hit. The Glocks (long time IPS Members) got hit in the keys then again at their sprawl in Fort Myers. Then Cindy took the big hit in Puerto Rico. Leilani Estates looks like the lots were developed but the individual owners built there homes. I believe they went in with their eyes wide open. It's all a matter of time, we just usually hope it's not in our life time. Thank God no loss of Life so far, in the end, it's all that matters.

[WestCoastGal]

1 hour ago, Dave-Vero said:

Hawaii News Now is saying this morning's summit explosion wasn't the big steam explosion that's been expected.  But ashfall is a problem, including offshore.  Plume height not yet fully determined, seems at least 30,000 ft.  Fissures 13 and 17 are active.  Earthquakes continue.  They're all very shallow, meaning they're felt more strongly than would be the case for deeper ones.

 

Meanwhile, in Orlando, a Disney parade's fire-breathing dragon caught fire.

 

 

Didn't see the magnitude recorded of this mornings explosion, but my husband said the news he saw called it the big one. Told him it wasn't. 

Did just capture this image from the HVO's camera of the Halema'uma'u overlook crater. It was a wet morning so imagine that's just drippy ash streaks on the lense. At first I thought it was a camera shot of projectiles LOL but the eruption occured at 4:15am HST and this was captured at 8:45am HST. Impressive photo all the same.

[bgl]

Yep, it's certainly a calculated risk and ANYONE buying property here in Lava Risk Zone 1 is made aware of that. That being said, the risk of something bad happening to one's house in a lifetime (here in Zone 1) is calculated at around 4%. I was willing to take that risk, and I have no intention of regretting that decision - no matter what happens. Needless to say, if you happen to be in that 4% that's tragic, devastating and life changing and more.

[WestCoastGal]

Here's a Hawaii News Now story on how some of the local farmers are being affected by the lava and gases. Sounds like Johnsons lived close to Kapoho Farms (where the dashcam has been). WXChasing's listing on LiveStormChasing.com was shown as Opihikao. Can business owners still take out interruption of business and or crop loss insurance (or whatever it's called) if they are in one of the (1-3 zones) and give them some shelter from losses from lava, ash, etc.? Sounds like there are some programs in place to help farmers from the USDA. I know back in 1960 one of the stories I posted about the eruption hitting Kapoho mentioned the sugar cane field owner taking photos for his insurance claim. Cost of some of the food items produced has probably already started to go up.

Hawaii News Now story about Go-Fund-Me raising money for those affected.

 

[bgl]

Torrrential rain in combination with thick vog!  In retrospect, my decision to skip my morning walk - brilliant!  And that potential trip to the beach, oh well, there's always tomorrow! OR NOT!  (Photos taken two minutes ago out my front door).

[WestCoastGal]

I mentioned the Go-Fund-Me fundraising article above as one way if you are so inclined you can help families there. One story I kind of followed early on was that of Amber Makuakane and her two kids in Leilani Estates--she's someone if you had kids in school in Pahoa might know. Hers was a story that a few papers* covered of her situation as she was one of the first five homes lost to the lava. The news mentioned that she is a single mom and school teacher. There was some mention that she lost her husband, Moses (when he was 37). The house that burned was the house they had moved into in LE right after they were married. Her parents live in LE too. Her niece, Madisyn or "Maddie", had some rare condition and in need of emergency medical care and someone stole a donation jar at local store that had been set up for the little girl. These were stories that came up online when had tried to see how Amber and her kids were doing after finding themselves without a home. Had hoped one of the news agencies had done a follow up story but then as the eruptions kept happening and more families were displaced the news moved on. Certainly Amber and her kids are a young family who's seen a lot of loss and pain. I'm sure if you start reading about these families you'll find someone you'd like to help. Not everyone likes to donate to large agencies which is why I mentioned this effort, but certainly the Local Red Cross Agency (story mentioned in the last day or two here) can use financial help to house, feed and safely look after displaced adults with kids and pets until they can get back to their homes or find other housing if not possible.

*http://www.staradvertiser.com/2018/05/06/breaking-news/fundraiser-set-up-for-pahoa-elementary-teacher-who-lost-home-to-lava/

http://www.tbo.com/ap/sports/college-football/slopes-of-volcano-offer-affordable-piece-of-paradise-risks-ap_college-football259de1bbf16f4dda9853a1467c6fc424