COURTESY OF HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY Above is a view of the East Laeapuki bench in May. The picture at right shows the site on Friday.

Big Island lava bench drops into ocean

VOLCANO, Hawaii » A large lava bench along the coastline at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park collapsed into the ocean this week, possibly shaken loose by several earthquakes, volcanologists said.

The East Laeapuki delta, an unsteady feature built by lava from Kilauea volcano flowing into the ocean, has disappeared, said Jim Kauahikaua, scientist-in-charge at Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

Nearly 44 acres of the bench vanished, perhaps because of a 5.4-magnitude earthquake Monday or high surf caused by Hurricane Flossie, according to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

No one was injured when the land made of volcanic rock collapsed.

"We had a report from a tour pilot that East Laeapuki bench had collapsed," Kauahikaua said. "It's totally gone."

Most of the lava bench and part of the nearby sea cliff fell into the ocean, he said.

East Laeapuki had been one of the main ocean entry sites for lava from the Puu Oo lava vent. Pieces of the delta also disappeared during previous collapses of 34 acres in December 1996, 44 acres in November 2005 and 16 acres in May.

COURTESY OF HAWAIIAN VOLCANO OBSERVATORY Above shows the site on Friday.