Many people on the Big Island of Hawaii are bracing for major upheaval if lava from Mauna Loa volcano slides across a key highway and blocks the quickest route connecting two sides of the island.
The molten rock could make the road impassable and force drivers to find alternate coastal routes in the north and south. That could add hours to commute times, doctor’s visits and freight truck deliveries.
“I am very nervous about it being cut off,” said Frank Manley, a licensed practical nurse whose commute is already a one-hour-and-45-minute drive from his home in Hilo to a Kaiser Permanente clinic in Kailua-Kona.
Photo: Reuters
If the highway closes, he said he anticipates driving two-and-a-half to three hours in each direction, and he fears he might lose pay if an accident or other traffic disruption along an alternate route delays his arrival.
The lava is oozing slowly at a rate that might reach the road next week, but its path is unpredictable and could change course, or the flow could stop completely and spare the highway.
The slow-moving flow was coursing about 4.3km from the road on Friday, US Geological Survey scientists said.
Photo: Reuters
There are more affordable housing options on the island’s east side, home to the county seat, Hilo, but many jobs at beach resorts, in construction and other industries, are readily available on the west side, where Kailua-Kona is. Saddle Road, also known as Route 200 or Daniel K. Inouye Highway, connects the two communities.
The US Department of Transportation on Thursday took steps to remove potential traffic obstacles on the northern coastal route by reopening a lane across Nanue Bridge that was closed for repairs.
Hilo also is one of the island’s major harbors, where a wide variety of goods arrive by ship before proceeding across the island by truck.
Hawaii County Councilor Susan L.K. Lee Loy, who represents Hilo and parts of Puna, said she is concerned about big rigs traveling across aging coastal bridges.
“It’s going to take a lot to rethink how we move about on Hawaii Island,” she said.
Manley said he would have to get up at 3am to reach work by 8am. If he left at 5pm, he would not get home until 8pm.
“That drastically reduces my amount of time that I would be able to spend with my family,” he said.
Tanya Harrison of Hilo said she would need a full day off work to travel to her doctor in Kona.
There are more than 200,000 Big Island residents. Amid throngs of tourists, delivery trucks and commuters forced to reroute, Harrison said she could not imagine the congestion.
“It might even be quicker just to fly to Honolulu,” she said of the hour-long flight. “There’s no line at the Hilo airport. Fly over, see the doctor, come back would actually be quicker than driving.”
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