(BIVN) – Episode 25 in the ongoing eruption at the summit of Kīlauea volcano began and ended on Wednesday. The June 11th display coincided with Kamehameha Day, the annual state holiday honoring the first monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom. 

Lava fountains were once again over 1,000 feet in height. The event attracted so many visitors to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park that police issued an alert to motorists warning of heavy traffic on Highway 11 fronting the Park entrance.  

“Unless you are planning to visit the Park, motorists are requested to avoid this section of Highway 11 between Puna and Kaʻū Districts,” a Hawaiʻi County Civil Defense message stated.  

image from USGS webcam

After a few days of precursory behavior, continuous eruptive activity started at the north vent at 11:57 a.m. on Wednesday. The episode ended 8 hours later at 7:36 p.m. HST. 

“Lava fountains from the north vent reached over 1,000 ft (305 m) during this episode,” the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory wrote in an evening Volcanic Activity Notice. “Lava flows from this episode on the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera) may continue to exhibit slow movement or incandescence as they cool and solidify over the coming days.”

“The Uēkahuna tiltmeter (UWD) recorded about 14 microradians of deflationary tilt during this episode,” the USGS HVO wrote. “The end of the episode was coincident with a gradual change from deflation to inflation at the summit and a decrease in seismic tremor intensity.” 

image from USGS webcam

Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE.