Scientists declare 2 Hawaii volcanoes have stopped erupting

HONOLULU — U.S. scientists declared Tuesday that two active Hawaii volcanoes — one where lava destroyed hundreds of homes in 2018 and another where lava recently stalled before reaching a crucial Big Island highway — have stopped erupting.

“Kilauea is no longer erupting,” the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said in a statement Tuesday, followed by a separate one saying, “Mauna Loa is no longer erupting.”

Alert levels for both volcanoes were reduced from watch to advisory.

Mauna Loa began spewing molten rock Nov. 27 after being quiet for 38 years, drawing onlookers to take in the incandescent spectacle, and setting some nerves on edge early on among people who’ve lived through destructive eruptions.

Lava-viewers in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park enjoyed the added rare marvel of being able to see Mauna Loa’s smaller neighbor, Kilauea, erupting at the same time.

Kilauea has been erupting since September 2021. A 2018 Kilauea eruption destroyed more than 700 residences.

Mauna Loa lava didn’t pose a threat to any communities, but got within 1.7 miles of a major highway that connects the east and west sides of the island.