The already high sulfur dioxide levels in the park have doubled since a new gas vent opened in Halema'uma'u Crater on Kilauea’s summit on Thursday, March 13th. The park has been in ICS for about three weeks to manage this developing incident, but yesterday requested a Type II team to prepare for the next level of activity. Park staff have been heavily involved with assisting the county in dealing with eruptive activity outside the park in the Kalapana area, including visitor safety, traffic control, public health and EMS. The incident commander has been working closely with Hawaii County Civil Defense, and plans are now in the works to evacuate the park, including all employees and residents. Because of the prevailing and expected winds, the county is also preparing for an evacuation of the community of Volcano, just outside the park, due to high sulfur dioxide levels. Since March 13th, total emissions from the vent have risen from already high levels of 600 tons per day to between 1800 and 2000 tons per day. Sulfur dioxide levels in the park have been measured at 40 ppm.
