VIDEO: Overflight of East Rift Zone

Videographer Mick Kalber released this video of an overflight of the East Rift Zone he took with Paradise Helicopters on Thursday, Sept. 20, 2018.

Kalber stated:

In spite of cloudy conditions this morning, we were able to access the entire flow field of Kīlauea Volcano’s lower east rift zone eruption. We got a clear look within Fissure 8 this morning, and saw zero lava, not even a small glow.

The small amounts of lava erupted over the past six weeks have resurfaced the floor of the vent, but not exited the mouth to the northeast. Remarkably, except for very near the fissures that have been active, Leilani is starting to get green again! Vents nearby continue steaming steadily, but there is no active lava along the line of fissures or anywhere else on the flow field.

Pohoiki’s enormous sand bar persists, and the beach there wraps around from dead trees to the south end of the bay. Several black sand beaches have popped up on both sides of the initial ocean entry at Mackenzie, and the County has been taking bids to rebuild the road covered by the flow nearby to give access to Isaac Hale Beach Park.

Also, it appears that the Kapoho pond formed near the ocean to the north has now filled in with sand. We can’t be certain, since we were restricted to 3,000 feet, but we were unable to spot any water there.

It is now six weeks since the eruption went into a pause, or lull, as scientists call it. But she [Pele, the goddess of fire] is showing no signs of reactivation, almost no seismic, particularly in the LERZ, and may or may not resume eruptive activity. The lack of seismicity both at the summit and the lower east rift zone seem to support that projection, but time will tell.