Big Island activist again alerts community about eruption

Ikaika Marzo, who launched a community relief center during the 2018 Kilauea eruption, alerted the Kona community via social media of the Mauna Loa eruption Sunday night.

There were two 4.0-magnitude earthquakes just before the latest eruption, Marzo said in a phone interview with the Honolulu Star-Advertiser today. “And then there was a flurry, a swarm of earthquakes that happened just immediately after that so we knew something was going to happen.”

Hawaii residents and people abroad who have relatives living on the Big Island turned to Marzo’s Facebook page for information on the eruption. The former Hawaii County mayoral candidate has more than 40,000 people following his social media account.

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Four years ago, Marzo posted video of lava as it entered Leilani Estates in the 2018 Kilauea eruption. He launched a community relief center, dubbed Pu‘uhonua O Puna, to help support displaced residents with hot meals, clothing, bottled water and other items.

County Civil Defense Administrator Talmadge Magno said the lava flow from the Mauna Loa eruption is not threatening any communities.

The flow is in the northeast rift zone, above 12,000 feet. “Right now, activities are way up the mountain in an isolated kind of remote area,” Magno said in a phone interview with the Star-Advertiser today.

Though the flow does not pose a threat, Magno advised residents to be prepared and stay informed on the eruption in case things change.

“We’re going to maintain vigilance to make sure that if we sense through the information that we’re getting that any place might be threatened, we’ll be able to take action,” he said.