Faster-moving Hawaii lava gushes into sea, spews new danger

A volcano that is oozing, spewing and exploding on Hawaii's Big Island has gotten more hazardous, sending rivers of molten rock pouring into the ocean Sunday and launching lava skyward that caused the first major injury.

Kilauea volcano began erupting more than two weeks ago and has burned dozens of homes, forced thousands of people to flee and shot up ash clouds from its summit that led officials to distribute face masks.

Brittany Kimball watches as lava erupts from a fissure near Pahoa, Hawaii, Saturday, May 19, 2018. Two fissures that opened up in a rural Hawaii community have merged to produce faster and more fluid lava. Scientists say the characteristics of lava oozing from fissures in the ground has changed significantly as new magma mixes with decades-old stored lava. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Lava flows have picked up speed in recent days, spattering molten rock that hit a man in the leg.

He was outside his home Saturday in the remote, rural region affected by the volcano when the lava "hit him on the shin and shattered everything from there down on his leg," Janet Snyder, Hawaii County mayor's spokeswoman, told the Hawaii News Now TV station.

Lava that's flying through the air from cracks in the Earth can weigh as much as a refrigerator and even small pieces can be deadly, officials said.

The injury came the same day that lava began streaming across a highway and flowing into the ocean.

Lava erupts from fissures near Pahoa, Hawaii Saturday, May 19, 2018. Two fissures that opened up in a rural Hawaii community have merged to produce faster and more fluid lava. Scientists say the characteristics of lava oozing from fissures in the ground has changed significantly as new magma mixes with decades-old stored lava. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

In this May 19, 2018 photo, lava erupts inside Leilani Estates near Pahoa, Hawaii. As lava flows have grown more vigorous in recent days, there's concern more homes may burn and more evacuations may be ordered. (Jamm Aquino/Honolulu Star-Advertiser via AP)

The interaction of lava and seawater has created a cloud of steam laced with hydrochloric acid and fine glass particles that can irrigate the skin and eyes and cause breathing problems.

The lava haze, or "laze," extended as far as 15 miles (24 kilometers) west of where the lava gushed into the ocean on the Big Island's southern coast. It was just offshore and running parallel to the coast, said U.S. Geological Survey scientist Wendy Stovall.

Authorities warn that the plume could shift direction if the winds change. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says sulfur dioxide emissions also have tripled.

In this May 19, 2018 photo, lava erupts near a home inside Leilani Estates near Pahoa, Hawaii. As lava flows have grown more vigorous in recent days, there's concern more homes may burn and more evacuations may be ordered. (Jamm Aquino/Honolulu Star-Advertiser via AP)

In this May 19, 2018 photo, a river of pahoehoe lava flows inside Leilani Estates near Pahoa, Hawaii. As lava flows have grown more vigorous in recent days, there's concern more homes may burn and more evacuations may be ordered. (Jamm Aquino/Honolulu Star-Advertiser via AP)

Residents in the area have been evacuated, and the highway that the lava crossed has shut down in places.

Joseph Kekedi, an orchid grower who lives and works about 3 miles (5 kilometers) from where lava is pouring into the sea, said luckily the flow didn't head his way. At one point, it was about a mile upslope from his property in the coastal community of Kapoho.

He said residents can't do much but stay informed and be ready to get out of the way.

"Here's nature reminding us again who's boss," Kekedi said.

He is hosting a 90-year-old who evacuated from the Leilani Estates neighborhood, where lava started spewing May 3. He also was storing belongings for other friends who had to leave their homes.

This May 19, 2018 aerial photo released by the U.S. Geological Survey shows lava fountains from Fissure 20 in Kilauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone in Pahoa, Hawaii. Kilauea volcano began erupting more than two weeks ago and has burned dozens of homes, forced people to flee and shot up plumes of steam from its summit that led officials to distribute face masks to protect against ash particles. (U.S. Geological Survey via AP)

In this Saturday, May 19, 2018, photo released by the U.S. Geological Survey, lava flows from fissures near Pahoa, Hawaii. Kilauea volcano began erupting more than two weeks ago and has burned dozens of homes, forced people to flee and shot up plumes of steam from its summit that led officials to distribute face masks to protect against ash particles. (U.S. Geological Survey via AP)

Kekedi said most of his neighbors are optimistic. He has friends who lost houses when lava smothered the town of Kalapana in the 1990s but they built again, found a good life and "life went on."

Scientists say they don't know how long the eruption will last. The volcano has opened more than 20 vents, including four that have merged into one large crack. It has been gushing lava high into the sky and sending a river of molten rock toward the ocean at about 300 yards (274 meters) per hour.

The flows accelerated after newer lava began emerging from the ground late last week. The fresher lava is hotter and tends to move faster than the older lava that was unleashed earlier.

Scientists say the older lava is likely from magma that Kilauea has been storing underground since the volcano last erupted in 1955.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Chuck Anthony wears a gas mask as he stands next to a wall of lava entering the ocean near Pahoa, Hawaii, Sunday, May 20, 2018. Kilauea volcano, oozing, spewing and exploding on Hawaii's Big Island, has gotten more hazardous in recent days, with rivers of molten rock pouring into the ocean and flying lava causing the first major injury. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Members of the media record a wall of lava entering the ocean near Pahoa, Hawaii, Sunday, May 20, 2018. Kilauea volcano, oozing, spewing and exploding on Hawaii's Big Island, has gotten more hazardous in recent days, with rivers of molten rock pouring into the ocean and flying lava causing the first major injury. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

The area affected by lava and ash is small compared with the Big Island, which is about 4,000 square miles (10,360 square kilometers). The volcano has spared most of the island and the rest of the Hawaiian chain.

Officials reminded tourists that flights have not been affected, even on the Big Island. There, travelers are free to do most of the usual sightseeing activities that aren't associated with the erupting volcano.

HONOLULU (AP) — A judge on Friday forced the Hawaii attorney general's office to turn over to lawyers involved in the hundreds of lawsuits over last summer's Maui wildfires all documents, interviews and data collected by the outside team hired to investigate the disaster.

Attorneys representing plaintiffs suing over the August fires filed a motion last month asking a judge to compel the state provide them with the material gathered by the Fire Safety Research Institute, which was hired by the state to investigate.

The state refused, saying disclosing the records would “jeopardize and hinder” the investigation. In court documents opposing the motion, the state called the request “premature, baseless and frivolous,” and asked a judge to order that attorneys fees be paid to the state for defending against the motion.

Soon after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century ripped through the historic town of Lahaina and killed 101 people, Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez announced hiring outside investigators. Last month Lopez and representatives from the Fire Safety Research Institute released a report on the first phase of the investigation, which said the head of the emergency management agency dragged his heels about returning to the island amid the unfolding crisis, while a broad communications breakdown left authorities in the dark and residents without emergency alerts.

During a Friday hearing on the island of Maui, state Deputy Attorney General David Matsumiya told Judge Peter Cahill the state is concerned that releasing information could prompt the six people who haven't been interviewed yet to change their stories.

Cahill balked.

“Do you really believe that's going to be happening?” he asked, clearly upset. “And so what if they change their stories? Aren't they entitled to?”

Cahill seemed to indicate concerns with the investigation, including whether people interviewed were advised that they weren't obligated to answer questions.

“By the way, the taxpayers are paying for this,” the judge continued.

Lopez said last month the investigation contract was initially not to exceed $1.5 million, but because they are behind schedule, the contract was extended. According to an updated contract, the cost increased by $2.5 million, not to exceed a total of $4 million.

The judge's order is of “grave concern,” the attorney general's office said in a statement after the hearing.

“The independent, objective fact-finding process and analysis is critical to determining what county and state agencies must do to ensure that a tragedy like this never happens again,” the statement said. “Premature release of these materials may allow external factors to influence the analysis.”

The attorney general is reviewing options and will soon decide on an appropriate course of action.

Cahill told Matsumiya he understands the state's concerns, but not giving the information to the attorneys would delay litigation. The investigation is important, and it was a wise investment to hire an outside agency given the state lacks a fire marshal, he said, “but it's also important that people have their day in court.”

Cahill noted there are some 400 lawsuits involving thousands of plaintiffs.

“It's frustrating the process of litigation,” Cahill said, “which is also a truth-seeking mechanism.”

David Minkin, an attorney representing Maui County, suggested to the judge that the investigative process was tainted.

Investigators “showed up in Lahaina, said we're here from the AG's office and started talking to people,” without informing them of their rights, he said.

Matsumiya said the state is trying to “protect the integrity of the investigation, which is designed to create a better future for Lahaina, and all of those people in Lahaina."

But Cahill responded that “the past in this case, given what's occurred on this island, needs to be take care of as well,” and that litigation will determine whether there were any legal breaches of duty.

During a separate hearing later Friday to discuss coordination of the lawsuits, Cahill said a handful of lawsuits are scheduled to go to trial in November.

FILE - Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez and members of the Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) hold a press conference on the Maui Wildfire Phase One Report findings on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, in Honolulu. A judge on Friday, May 3, 2024, forced the Hawaii attorney general's turn over to lawyers involved in the hundreds of lawsuits over last summer's Maui wildfires all documents, interviews and data collected by the outside team hired to investigate the deadly disaster. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia, File)

FILE - The aftermath of a wildfire is visible in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 17, 2023. A judge on Friday, May 3, 2024, forced the Hawaii attorney general's turn over to lawyers involved in the hundreds of lawsuits over last summer's Maui wildfires all documents, interviews and data collected by the outside team hired to investigate the deadly disaster. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)