Buffer to prevent
possible lava fires

---

Star-Bulletin staff

HILO >> After controlling a fire that burned 880 acres at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park earlier this week, firefighters today were to begin building a buffer to keep an advancing lava flow from igniting another blaze.

The goal is to prevent the pahoehoe lava flow from igniting grass and other plants that could then spread fire to a nearby rain forest at the 1,400-foot level.

Incident commander Greg Herbst said firefighters will use hand tools modified for conditions on Kilauea Volcano, including weed eaters and lawn rakes, to create a 3/4-mile "control line." Herbst said scientists predicted the flow would take 48 hours to reach the control line.

About 50 firefighters and other personnel will be working on the "control line" and battling the fire today, he said.

The firefighters maintained control over the fire yesterday but encountered new hazards like falling trees and "duff," the park said.

Duff is pumice, light cinder rock, strands of mineral called Pele's hair, and soot, all in a blanket on the ground. In some areas the duff is several feet thick, and firefighters fall through it up to their waists, a park statement said.

The duff is thick on the ground because the fire area lies downwind from the Puu Oo eruption site.

The lava flow that sparked the fire Saturday continued down to the 1,700-foot elevation yesterday, but moved through an area of cool, moist forest that prevented new outbreaks, the park said.