Retire In Paradise

Map showing current eruption flow of Kilauea

Some Background Data:

As a former classroom teacher, I feel  the best way to answer questions, concerns or fears is through education.  Although most people live in areas where there is frequently danger from one or more types of natural disasters - hurricanes, wildfires, floods, droughts, blizzards, tornadoes and earthquakes - they become familiar with these threats and learn to live in uneasy partnership with them.

However when faced with the exotic and unfamiliar peril of an active volcano, the hairs on the back of the neck naturally rise, as pictures of a Krakatau or Mt. St. Helens type of violent explosion come to mind.  Whereas Kilauea is not totally incapable of the occasional explosive outburst, her history - including the present outbreak - is one of a peaceful if insistent outflow of slow moving lava following paths led by gravity into the sea.

In the map above, for example, one can see that the total distance covered by new lava from the outbreak beginning on July 21st to November 30 is about 4.5 miles, averaging about 3/10 mile per week in a generally south and north easterly direction.  Recently this eastward motion stalled when the original fissure "D" began to fountain and send the lava down hill in a southerly direction towards the previously inundated and largely uninhabited areas of Royal Hawaiian Gardens west of Kalapana, which you can see in the center of the above map. 

Here are links to the most current data and daily updates:

http://volcano.wr.usgs.gov/kilaueastatus.php

http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/

Here's a link to spectacular images of the current  lava flow into the ocean:

http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/update/images.html

And here are links to more background data on the potential hazards of the current outbreak, including maps which show the most likely paths for lava flow based on terraine and past history. Remember the article was written in August, when the flow was still moving to the east. It has since changed, at least for now.

http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2007/1264/     maps pages 6-7

http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/hazards/kilauea.html

Visitors viewing the lava flow near ocean. I took this photo last year.

Kilauea's History: (Excerpted from the Hawaii Volcanoes Observatory website below:)

Throughout its history Kilauea has erupted from three main areas, its summit and two rift zones....(snip)

The summit of the volcano is high because eruptions are more frequent there than at any other single location on the volcano. However, more eruptions actually occur on the long rift zones than in the summit area: but they are not localized, instead constructing ridges of lower elevation than the summit. Eruptions along the east and southwest rift zones have built ridges reaching outward from the summit some 125 km and 35 km, respectively.

Most eruptions are relatively gentle, sending lava flows downslope from fountains a few meters to a few hundred meters high. Over and over again these eruptions occur, gradually building up the volcano and giving it a gentle, shield-like form. Every few decades to centuries, however, powerful explosions spread ejecta across the landscape. Such explosions can be lethal, as the one in 1790 that killed scores of people in a war party near the summit of Kilauea. Such explosions can take place from either the summit or the upper rift zones.

Future of Kilauea

The foreseeable future of Kilauea looks much like the past. Continued effusive eruptions will fill the caldera, heighten the summit, and build the rift zones--over and over and over again. Sporadic explosions will cause destruction but hopefully not loss of life. We cannot tell how much larger Kilauea will grow or when it will stop, but it will surely continue to erupt through the rest of human history.

http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/history/main.html

 Lava Zones in the Puna District

When faced with insuring homes in Puna, insurers use the above Lava Zone map which is rated according to degree of hazard, with 1 being the area of greatest hazard from lava, and 5 being the least. Many homes in Puna are in Zone 2 or 3.

So, how difficult is it to get insurance, and how costly? Below is an excerpt from an article in the Honolulu Star bulletin from last April which addresses this concern.

In the last decade, Puna has seen the median price paid for single-family homes increase threefold. While single-family homes on the Big Island realized an average 18 percent annual price appreciation over the past five years, the Puna district itself averaged 27 percent appreciation for single-family homes and 61 percent for land.  (snip)

Word is out about Puna's investment potential; however…..(snip)

Traditional insurers generally will not assume the risk that it takes to provide coverage in a lava zone, so most Puna homeowners are forced to pay higher premiums and obtain insurance from the state insurer of last resort, the Hawaii Property Insurance Association, Schmidt said. However, since HPIA caps insurance replacement coverage at $350,000, homeowners …who have considerable more investment in the area, are forced to seek insurance from places like Lloyd's of London, where their premiums can be up to 100 times more than those of conventional insurers.

 http://starbulletin.com/2007/04/22/business/story02.html

                            IS IT REALLY THAT HIGH?

                     Not in my experience!

Insurers and HPIA will not give a set table of insurance rates that I can publish, however in my experience the horror stories of costly insurance just are not true.

My own HPIA insurance on my home in lava zone 2 (Hawaiian Shores Subdivision) currently costs me only $755 per year on the dwelling, which has an assessed value of $189,000. The comprehensive policy includes dwelling, other structures, personal property and loss of use, for a total of $250,000 coverage for fire and lava flow. It also includes personal liability coverage of $100,000 each occurence. 

A separate hurricane insurance policy on the property costs an additional $407 per year for a total coverage of $197,000.    As a comparison, a small cabin I owned in a high fire hazard area in Southern California cost $589 per year on California Fair Plan (the equivalent of HPIA) fire insurance, for total coverage of only $84,700 for the structure, nothing for personal property and no liability coverage. And I paid an additional $225 per year for flood insurance.

HPIA will NOT insure a home bought and used for the purpose of short term vacation rentals, however it will ensure homes bought as second residences that are then rented out for longer terms (month to month or leases.)

News is that HPIA will be raising their rates as much as 35% for insurance in Lava Zone 2 within the next few months.  But I just learned about an affordable alternative:

Norrin Lau

Specializing in more affordable insurance alternatives for Lava Zone 2

Finance Insurance, Ltd.

1164 Bishop Street, Suite 400

Honolulu , HI 96813

Direct (808) 522-5394

Fax (808) 522-2089

Email:  nlau@financeinsurance.com Website: www.financeinsurance.com

NEWS FLASH!  HPIA INSURANCE IS - REPEAT IS - STILL AVAILABLE IN LAVA ZONES 1 AND 2!!

A recent news article in the Honolulu Star Bulletin regarding FEARS that it wouldn't be available or would be prohibitively expensive started a wild rumor that this was already fact. Not true. The rates did go up: mine increased by the predicted 35%, from $755 to a little over $1000 per year, but certainly still affordable.  And this covers fire damage from all sources - including volcanic activity.

Many of the subdivisions in the Puna district, such as Hawaiian Paradise Park, are in Lava zone 3, the homes readily insurable without the limitations set by HPIA. You can compare the subdivision map (below) with the lava zone map, but check with an insurance agent about any specific subdivision or home to be certain. 

You might also compare the Hawaii lava zone figures with insurance costs in your own area, particularly if you live in a wildfire, earthquake, tornado, flood or hurricane zone.