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A changing landscape 5 years after Kilauea eruption

Leilani Estates, ground zero for the 2018 Kilauea eruption, continues to attract buyers despite its recent history. Lava inundated the lower portion of the large rural subdivision of 1-acre lots and virtually obliterated Kapoho Vacationland, Lanipuna Gardens and Kapoho Beach Lots.

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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

The view from the top of Fissure 8, since renamed Ahu’aila’au, shows the path of the fast-moving lava channel that traveled nearly 8 miles to the ocean during the 2018 Lower Puna eruption.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Hikers scale the summit of 160-foot-tall Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates. The cinder cone has been renamed Ahu’aila’au. Although covered in lava, the area is still private property.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Hikers head back to nearby homes in Leilani Estates after exploring Fissure 8.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Looking down into the heart of the now-quiet Fissure 8 cinder cone, which produced two-thirds of the 1 cubic kilometer of lava from the 2018 Lower East Rift Zone eruption.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Ikaika Marzo organized Pu'uhonua o Puna and assisted many lava evacuees during the 2018 eruption. He has since started a construction business.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Matt Purvis is owner of the Tin Shack Bakery in Pahoa.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Kris Burmeister points out Fissure 8, which sits on Burmeister's property. Trespassing has been an ongoing issue.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Fissure 8, the large cinder cone from the eruption, is on private property in Leilani Estates.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Properties are seen on the edge of Fissure 8. The sign warns people not to trespass as the area is made up of private lots.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Fissure 8 sits on Kris Burmeister's property. Trespassing has been an ongoing issue.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

The view of Fissure 8's large cinder cone from the eruption.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Kris Burmeister, a property owner in Leilani Estates, shows a photo of the eruption in 2018.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Fissure 8, the large cinder cone from the eruption, is on private property in Leilani Estates.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Properties are seen on the edge of Fissure 8. The sign warns people not to trespass as the area is made up of private lots.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Ikaika Marzo organized Pu'uhonua o Puna and assisted many lava evacuees during the 2018 eruption. He has since started a construction business.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

The view from Fissure 8's large cinder cone from the eruption.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

The view of Fissure 8's large cinder cone from the eruption.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Holes in the lava pose a danger to the public.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Kris Burmeister points out Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

ATV tracks are seen on Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Looking into the crater of Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Looking into the crater of Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates.
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Ronit Fahl / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Matt Purvis is owner of the Tin Shack Bakery in Pahoa.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

The glow of lava from Fissure 8 as seen from Pohoiki Road between Leilani Estates and the geothermal plant on May 28, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

Lava from Fissure 8 flows over Pohoiki Road between the Leilani Estates and the geothermal plant on May 28, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

Lava from Fissure 8 flows over Pohoiki Road between the Leilani Estates and the geothermal plant on May 28, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

A large fountain of lava from Fissure 8 is seen from the end of Luana Street in Leilani Estates on May 29, 2018.
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A view of lava eruption from Fissure 8 from Luana Street in Leilani Estates on May 30, 2018.
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Mick and Ann Kalber give each other a kiss after locking the gate at the driveway to their home on July 6, 2018. They had returned to their home in Leilani Estates to remove items as they are in the mandatory evacuation zone.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

Pyroclastic rocks fell from the sky on Kupono Street due to the volcano eruption at Fissure 4 on May 31, 2018.
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The lava flow from Fissure 8 was about 20 feet from Pohoiki Road on May 30, 2018.
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Kupono Street had no cars on May 31, 2018, as most of the residents moved out.
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National Guardsmen take noxious gas readings on Kupono Street near the lava eruption from Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates on May 31, 2018.
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Cpl. Aven Santiago, left, and Capt. Darren Taylor take sulfur dioxide readings on July 2, 2018.
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Leilani Estates residents who were evacuated due to the volcanic eruption activity in the East Rift Zone were allowed in to their properties to recover personal belongings on June 29, 2018. Friends of Ken "Super Kenny" Peeler helped move his belongings from his Leilani Estates home in view of the plume of emissions from the Fissure 8 eruption.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

Sgt. Andrew Jackson stood near the lava eruption from Fissure 8 in Leilani Estates on May 30, 2018.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Fissure 8 was photographed during a Paradise Helicopters tour on July 24, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

Mark Landers stands on the road barrier to see if anyone is down the road in Leilani Estates on July 6, 2018.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

A lava river from Fissure 8 flowed near Leilani Avenue in Leilani Estates on July 19, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

Joshua Winchester handles the ukulele and Brendan Porter provides the vocals to the song "Too Good at Goodbyes" in Pahoa with the glow of the Fissure 8 eruption in the sky on June 29, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

A view of the huge Fissure 8 from Val Bandmann's Leilani Estates property on June 30, 2018. Bandmann was one of several Leilani Estates homeowners allowed back to her property on this day to gather belongings or, as in Bandmann's case, document the situation for possible FEMA assistance.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Cristhian Barcco and Nao Yamamoto's daughter, Emilia, 4, paused to pet a cat which they evacuated with from Kapoho to Orchidland on May 14, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

A lava river about 100 yards wide moves to Kapoho Bay on June 14, 2018.
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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

Volcanologist Rick Hazlett, at right, takes a closer look at Fissure 8. With him is assistant Samantha Isgett, his assistant, on June 12, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

A lava river about 100 yards wide moves to Kapoho Bay on June 14, 2018.
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STAR-ADVERTISER FILE

A lava river about 100 yards wide moves to Kapoho Bay on June 14, 2018.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Lava advanced in the Kapoho area of Puna on May 18, 2018
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

A large plume trailed out of Halema'uma'u Crater within the Kilauea volcano summit caldera at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on May 10, 2018.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

A massive ash plume billowed out of the Halema'uma'u crater located within the Kilauea caldera located in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on May 15, 2018. The photo was taken from the Volcano Golf and Country Club.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Fissure 17 continued to erupt, steam and flow in the Kapoho area of Puna on May 18, 2018.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

A real estate sign laid on its side in front of a home along Pomaikai Street in Leilani Estates on June 3, 2018. The community was inundated with lava from the ongoing volcanic activity of Kilauea.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

The East Rift Zone from the ongoing Kilauea eruption was seen from a helicopter on May 9, 2018.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

An aerial view of Fissure 17 and the lava it released in the Kilauea East Rift zone on May 16, 2018. It had been advancing toward the coastline near Kapoho but its activity has started to wane.
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GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARADVERTISER.COM

A crowd of several hundred attended a community meeting at Pahoa School to receive updates from officials on the continuing flow of lava from Kilauea on May 22, 2018. Nanawale resident Frankie Stapleton, who lived there for 40 years, expressed the frustrations of the community there.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Hilo residents Virginia Penner, Janelle Kaiser, Brooke Abrahams and visitor Haley Black viewed the glow of Fissure 8 from the parking lot of Sacred Heart Church in Pahoa on June 16, 2018. The spot was a popular place to watch the volcanic activity of Kilauea from afar.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Black Sands evacuee John McCrary played his guitar as the glow of Fissure 8 lit the sky at the Sacred Heart Church parking lot in Pahoa on June 16, 2018. The spot was a popular place to watch the volcanic activity of Kilauea from afar.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

Sandy Garrett-Shorty of Arizona took a photo of Halema'uma'u Crater at the Kilauea volcano summit caldera in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park out on May 10, 2018. She admitted to being a bit nervous about the potential explosive eruption of Kilauea and then added, “But I think if you’re going to die, this is the best way to die.”

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