The Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) is continuing emergency repairs to Mamalahoa Highway (Rte. 11) in the Volcano area of Hawaii County following the seismic activity associated with the volcanic activity at the lower East Rift Zone of the Kilauea Volcano.
A 24-hour single-lane restriction was implemented to address surface repairs on Mamalahoa Highway. This single lane restriction with contraflow to allow the flow of traffic in both directions began in the eastbound lane on Tuesday, Dec. 11, and continued through Friday, Dec. 14.
On Saturday, Dec. 15, the work moved on to the westbound lane. HDOT anticipates the 24-hour single-lane restriction will be in place at this location through Wednesday, Dec. 19. All work is weather permitting; however, the closure will remain in place until the asphalt layer has been installed.
Between April 30 to Aug. 4, 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory recorded approximately 60,000 earthquakes—with 4,400 of those earthquakes measured at a magnitude of 3 or greater and the largest measuring at moment magnitude of 6.9. The seismic activity contributed to the formation of rifts under Mamalahoa Highway near the entrance to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
Since July 6, HDOT has repaired subsurface voids and conducted embankment repairs in a number of areas. Ground truthing tests, including boring and camera reconnaissance, and ground penetrating radar, were used to determine the size and depth of the subsurface voids prior to beginning repairs. This portion of Rte. 11 will continue to be monitored by HDOT using cameras.
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Source: Hawaii DOT
