Nearly 100 Kīlauea Earthquakes Prompt Hawaii Park Closures

Nearly 100 earthquakes shook the summit of Kīlauea volcano over a 24-hour span, prompting Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park to close part of its grounds Thursday, according to the National Park Service, reported by the New York Post.

How many earthquakes hit Kīlauea's summit, and how strong were they?

The swarm totaled close to 100 quakes beneath the summit area in one day, the National Park Service reported. The largest event measured magnitude 3.4 and struck at 9:52 p.m. HST Wednesday, according to the same source. The most intense window ran roughly seven hours, from about 8 p.m. Wednesday to 3 a.m. Thursday, per the park service. Activity and summit inflation both leveled off after 3 a.m. Thursday, the agency said.

By the numbers

Two figures anchor the park service's Thursday report: nearly 100 earthquakes recorded in 24 hours, and a peak magnitude of 3.4 logged at 9:52 p.m. Wednesday. Both figures come from the National Park Service's Thursday update, as relayed by the New York Post.

Which parts of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park are closed?

Park officials closed the Keanakākoʻi area Thursday, citing public safety amid the earthquake swarm and broader volcanic unrest, according to the National Park Service. The closure covers Old Crater Rim Drive, the overlooks near Keanakākoʻi Crater, and the Crater Rim Trail leading to Keanakākoʻi, the agency said. The Devastation Trail parking lot remains open, per the same report.

What triggered the unrest beneath the volcano?

The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory tied the swarm to a shallow magma intrusion that occurred overnight within the summit region, near the site of Kīlauea's ongoing eruption, according to the observatory's findings as reported by the New York Post. A comparison of webcam imagery taken before and after the intrusion showed no new ground cracking and no lava breaking out in a new location, the National Park Service said. In the same 24-hour window, the north vent recorded several overflows, including a small dome fountain and a flow that lasted more than an hour Wednesday afternoon, per the park service.

Is a new eruption episode coming?

"The 55th episode of Kīlauea's ongoing eruption is expected to begin soon." — USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, as reported by the New York Post

The observatory's forecast follows the overnight intrusion and the pattern of overflows at the north vent, according to the same report. Kīlauea's current eruption has unfolded in a sequence of numbered episodes, and the next one would mark the 55th, the observatory said. No timeline beyond "soon" was given in the observatory's report as cited by the New York Post.

What should visitors watch for next?

• Check National Park Service alerts before heading to the Keanakākoʻi area, since the closure is listed as temporary but tied to ongoing seismicity.
• Expect the closure zone to expand or persist if earthquake counts climb back toward Wednesday night's rate of activity.
• Watch for USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory updates on the timing of the forecast 55th eruption episode.
• Plan around the Devastation Trail parking lot, which the park service says remains open even as nearby areas are restricted.

The park service's comparison of webcam imagery — showing no new ground cracks or off-site lava breakouts — suggests the intrusion has so far stayed within the existing eruptive footprint, according to the agency's Thursday assessment relayed by the New York Post. Whether that holds depends on how the seismicity trends in the coming days, a pattern the observatory and park service are continuing to track, per the same report.

For the full National Park Service and USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory details, see the original New York Post report.

How does this swarm compare to typical Kīlauea activity?

The park service's two headline figures put Wednesday night's swarm in context: nearly 100 earthquakes in 24 hours, against a single peak magnitude of 3.4, according to the agency's Thursday report. That ratio — a high quake count paired with a moderate top magnitude — points to a swarm driven by shallow magma movement rather than a single large rupture, per the National Park Service's description of the intrusion. The timing also stands out. The seven-hour window of strongest activity, from 8 p.m. Wednesday to 3 a.m. Thursday, aligns with the overnight intrusion the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory later identified, the agency said. By the time park officials issued Thursday's update, both the earthquake rate and summit inflation had already leveled off, according to the same source, suggesting the active phase of the intrusion was brief even as its aftereffects — including the forecast 55th eruption episode — are still unfolding.