About 70 shallow earthquakes in 2 hours occurred beneath the upper east rift zone of Kīlauea early this morning. The swarm began at 2:15 a.m. on Sunday, June 17 and is ongoing. Some quakes are in the mid 3's magnitudes. The earthquakes are centered 1 km (1 mile) southwest of Mauna Ulu and are concentrated between 1.5 and 3 kilometers (1-2 miles) deep. As of 4:30 a.m., ten of the quakes had magnitudes greater than 3 and were felt by nearby residents.
All data so far is consistent with the event being a shallow intrusion of magma. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is watching the situation closely and has deployed field crews to the scene.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has taken the following precautionary measures: Chain of Craters road is closed. Crater Rim Drive is closed between Jaggar museum and the Thurston lava tube parking lot. NPS personnel are sweeping both roads to evacuate visitors.
USGS Quake List: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/quakes_all.php
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