Kilauea Episode 50 activity starts, ash warning issued for Big Island
Episode 50 activity at Kīlauea pushed alert levels to WATCH and ORANGE as ash and lightweight tephra threatened East-to-Summit zones across Hawaii Island.
Kīlauea’s Episode 50 precursory activity picked up around 8:50 a.m. HST on June 26, when a small lava overflow emerged from the north vent and was joined by increased spattering and gas jetting. The U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory raised the volcano’s alert level from ADVISORY to WATCH and the Aviation Color Code from YELLOW to ORANGE as the summit eruption built toward another fountaining episode.
The National Weather Service posted a special weather statement for the East, Interior, South, Southeast and Summit zones through at least 8:15 p.m. HST on June 27, warning that ash, Pele’s hair and other lightweight tephra may fall downwind if eruption activity intensifies. The smallest volcanic particles can travel farther from the vent, which puts communities beyond the immediate summit area at risk for ashfall and reduced air quality if winds carry the plume their way.
HVO said the main fountaining window was expected between June 26 and June 27, with fountaining likely to start on June 26. The weather service said these episodes typically last less than 12 hours, but ash can remain airborne longer depending on wind and weather, so the practical effects on roads, school campuses, parks and businesses can linger after the lava stops fountaining. The clearest near-term concern for families across Hawaii Island is what drifts out of the plume, not just what rises from the vent.
USGS hazard guidance says near-vent areas can erupt or collapse without warning, and potentially lethal concentrations of sulfur dioxide gas may be present within 1 kilometer downwind of vent areas. That makes the summit zone, especially areas close to Halemaumau crater and the north vent, the most dangerous place to linger if activity escalates. Residents watching the eruption can use real-time advisories from IEMBOT HFO and the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory as the episode develops.
Kīlauea is one of five volcanoes on the Island of Hawaii and has been erupting nearly continuously for more than three decades. With the summit eruption still centered in Halemaumau crater, Episode 50 adds another round of ash and gas hazards to a volcano that remains active enough to affect daily life across the Big Island within hours.
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