
No Need to Run in Hawaii: The Lava Is Coming, but Very Slowly - ritchiea
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/24/us/as-volcano-erupts-around-them-hawaiians-pledge-to-gamely-go-with-the-flow.html?
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kijin
Would it be too difficult and/or costly to divert lava away from the town?
Like digging a trench toward a nearby valley? Or is the volcano so
unpredictable that another flow might begin to threaten the town from a
different direction at any time?

~~~
McKayDavis
There are various factors including the unpredictable nature of the flow as
well as the cost and sheer effort involved. But, also very prominently is the
cultural sensitivity to not disrupt the will of the volcano goddess Pele.

[http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/news/local-news/county-
diver...](http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/news/local-news/county-diversion-
still-table-lava-flow)

KHON2 (the local Honolulu Fox Affilate) has a good 5 part series on the
ongoing Kilauea eruption -- check part 3 for more discussion on your question.

[http://khon2.com/kilauea-facing-the-fire/](http://khon2.com/kilauea-facing-
the-fire/)

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blueskin_
Free version: [https://archive.today/0akQW](https://archive.today/0akQW)

I'm amazed anyone ever chooses to live somewhere that precarious, and that
their first thought is "well, we'll get a lot of time to evacuate" \- sure,
but you've still lost your home, anything you didn't take with you, possibly
your job, and have to now find somewhere else to live and completely change
your life. I guess for some people that wouldn't be so hard, but I could never
do it.

~~~
harmonicon
"sure, but you've still lost your home, anything you didn't take with you,
possibly your job, and have to now find somewhere else to live and completely
change your life."

I think you just laid out precisely why it is hard for them to move out ASAP.

~~~
blueskin_
That's why I don't understand the concept of living in such a precarious
place.

