Ka‘ū News Briefs Friday, November 17, 2017

   The mayor writes that "Ambulatory and emergency medical services are especially critical in rural Hawai‘i, where a small percentage of the population lives, but where a large percentage of trauma cases occur; where rural hospitals, clinics and health centers are sources of innovation and resourcefulness that deliver quality care, and are typically the economic foundation of their communities."
     The mayor's proclamation also encourages people to work in rural health care by saying, "being a rural healthcare provider provides tremendous opportunities to offer comprehensive, patient-centered and holistic care to patients."
     Ka‘ū Rural Health Community Association is receiving assistance from Rotary Club of Volcano and the 871st Army Reserve Engineer Company, of Hilo, to construct a covering for its ADA ramp. Many community members are helping said, Jessie Marques, KRHCAI Executive Director.

Ka‘ū Rural Health Community Association board members.

     Throughout the month of November, volunteers put together concrete footings, poured the concrete and constructed the ADA ramp overhang. During the weekend of Oct. 17 through 19, approximately 30 members of the 871st Engineer Co. were guided by project leader Jay Zheng during the construction process.
    Marques thanked George “Bev” Garrett, President of the Rotary Club of Volcano. 871st Engineer Company Captain Luke Goeckner and Leslie Isemoto, of Isemoto Construction, who assisted with the building permit.
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THE USDA'S FARM SERVICE AGENCY is offering loans for storage facilities. Farm storage facility loans provide low-interest financing to build or upgrade storage facilities for commodities, including but not limited to fruits, vegetables, floriculture, dairy, and unprocessed meat/poultry. Examples of eligible facility types are cold storage, grain bins, bulk tanks, and drying and handling equipment, including storage and handling trucks. View/download the Farm Storage Facility Loans fact sheet or visit your local FSA office for more information about this program.

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Traveling recently renovated Daniel Inouye Hwy, Route 200, the Saddle Road, is described by U.S.G.S. geologists as a fascinating way to study geology and volcanoes. Map from saddleroad.com

SADDLE ROAD, DANIEL K. INOUYE HWY, IS A PLACE TO STUDY VOLCANOES and the focus of this week's Volcano Watch by U.S.G.S. scientists at Hawaiian Volcano Observatory:
     Route 200, the Daniel K. Inouye Highway, crosses Humu‘ula Saddle, which separates Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, the two largest volcanoes on the Island of Hawai‘i, showcases outstanding volcanic geology and is easy to reach for roadside geologists.
     For the first 19 miles (30.6 km), Highway 200 ascends almost a mile (1.6 km) above sea level through mostly young native forest. The road crosses lava flows and patches of ashy soil ranging in age from 150 to 4000 years old. Rainfall is so abundant here—up to nearly 300 inches (760 cm) per year—that vegetation covers most outcrops.

The federal government has rebuilt much of the highway, taking it closer to some geologic features. Photo from saddleroad.com

     Around Milepost 19, Highway 200 emerges onto young-looking, lightly-vegetated ‘a‘ā lava from the 1855–1856 Mauna Loa eruption. This flow is one of seven that travelled from Mauna Loa toward Hilo in recorded history. The 1855–1856 eruption lasted a year and a half! Imagine the commuter's nightmare were this to occur today.
     Between Mileposts 19 and 20, tall trees occupy numerous kipuka growing on Punahoa pāhoehoe lava erupted from Mauna Loa 3100–3200 years ago. Near Milepost 21 the road drops into a kipuka floored by the 400-year-old Mauna Loa ‘Akahakoinahou ‘a‘ā flow.
    Near Saddlehouse Road, the road rises onto Mauna Loa ‘a‘ā lava erupted in1935–1936. This flow was the first-ever in the United States that authorities tried to "manipulate" to protect property downslope. The U.S. Army Air Corps, advised by Thomas Jaggar, Director of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory at the time, dropped 600-pound (272 kg) bombs on the active flow about ten miles (16 km) southwest of the intersection. The goal was to disrupt the lava channel, causing the flow to spread laterally rather than continue downhill. The impact was negligible.

Many kinds of lava can be seen along Daniel K. Inouye Hwy. Photo from saddleroad.com

     On the right side of the highway just after Saddlehouse Road, the 1935–1936 lava is rumpled into a spectacular series of low compressional ridges ("lava ogives"). These features are easiest to spot in early morning or dusk light. Each ridge indicates that you are near the end of the flow, where the lava became too stiff to continue. The actual terminus is about two miles (3.2 km) away.
     South of the road between Mileposts 22 and 23, a pullout marks the start of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō Trail, which crosses a landscape of diverse kipuka and younger flows. Spectacular old-growth ‘ōhi‘a and tree ferns appear in scattered groves. The trail, which used to continue all the way to Volcano ranchlands, now ends after four miles (6.4 km) at the edge of the 1984 flow, the youngest lava to head toward Hilo.
     Past Milepost 22, road builders deliberately constructed Highway 200 atop the 1935–1936 ‘a‘ā flow. That's because rubbly ‘a‘ā is much easier than solid pāhoehoe to grade.
     Near Milepost 23, Highway 200 approaches the base of Mauna Kea. The lumpy, grassy landscape to the right of the road results from the eruption of hawaiite, a unique type of lava that is notably stiffer and richer in silicaand potassium than Mauna Loa flows. The numerous upslope cones belong to the Pu‘uloa volcanic field, which last erupted about 4,600 years ago and was the source of the hawaiite. Pu‘uloa vents extend to the top of Mauna Kea.

Pu‘u, volcanic cones along Saddle Road. Photo from saddleroad.com

    A well-loved local landmark, Pu‘uhuluhulu, is at the crest of the Saddle. This densely-forested Mauna Kea cinder cone is entirely surrounded by younger Mauna Loa flows. An abandoned quarry at its eastern end exposes the cone's interior, showing that sometime after eruption of loose, porous cinders, narrow dikes of basaltic lava worked their way into the edifice. The dike rock matches the chemistry of Mauna Loa's lavas, suggesting that they intruded much later. But how and why they did remain a head-scratcher for geologists.
     Near the northwestern foot of Pu‘uhuluhulu is a stone wall, built by hand in the late 19th century by local cattle ranchers. The 1935–1936 lava lapped around and overtopped the wall in places. Stunning inflation features illustrate that the flow inflated like rising bread crust on both sides of the wall after initially coming to rest against it.