Racing the lava: A disaster in slow motion bearing down on Puna

When Robert and I were dreaming of and designing our house, we knew we would have to work closely with our contractor Bob Kirk to plan for and adapt to conditions on the job site. Who knew that racing the lava flow would become the main driver of our planning in September and October? But the lava is forecast to burn, cover and cut off our main access road to Pahoa, Hilo and beyond, by early October. (best estimate as of today is October 10th). 

It's like watching a disaster in slow motion seeing the daily progress reports on the June 27 lava flow as it burns its way down the mountain on the inevitable path to the ocean. My friends who have visited Robert Welsch and me in Hawaii will be shocked to see the forecast path of destruction when the molten river of lava will consume part of our village of Pahoa. Dr. Kimuras' map below lets us know that, for now, some residences will be taken out but, again for now, it looks as if Island Naturals, Tin Shack Bakery, and Locavore, to name a few, will not be in this first flow path. Our house is not at all in the path of the lava.  It's travel and logistics that will be very difficult once the main road to town, Route 130, is severed.  Work is under way on two closer to the sea escape/evacuation routes, but they are dirt roads not meant for the 9,000 vehicles per day that traverse Route 130 in Pahoa, and they will add up to an hour to what used to be 15 minute trips to buy milk.

Even though my house burned to the ground when I was five, and Robert's when he was nine, it's tough to imagine the fear and anxiety that must be going through the homeowners' minds with houses that may be burned and buried by lava in less than two or three weeks. Our drive to Hilo will be complicated, but not near as much as the lives of these Pahoa folks! The Pahoa residents are already smelling and driving through billowing smoke as the lava makes its way through the surrounding forest and brush. They won't know until the slow moving lava flow gets closer to town right where it will actually hit...but they know it's on the way from the red glow of lava that lights up the sky at night. 

What does this mean for our house currently under construction? Our property is about 8 miles away from the flow. We are literally racing the lava, speeding up deliveries before the main road is consumed.  Bob Kirk is doing an absolutely amazing job managing the chaos. We have already installed our solar system, water pump, and are taking deliveries of appliances, all a couple or three months ahead of schedule. We have contacted The Gas Company (yes, that's their name in HI) to arrange for our propane tank installation before the lava flows. Many other deliveries big and small have been accelerated. Both Bob and I have been buying what we need such as lighting and fixtures at Home Depot in Hilo since the trip now is only 45 minutes. It is expected to be as much as two hours once Route 130 is gone. 

There is good news. The main house and master suite have plumbing and electric roughed in. The gutters are up and ready to deliver water to our catchment system. Lighting sconces have been hung. The Balinese-influenced barn doors have been built, and look even better than we had imagined. Exterior painting is pretty much completed. All the floors have their artfully applied concrete stains completed, and they look great, thanks Bob! We are closing in on the "finish the finishes" phase of building. Once inspections are complete, we can start putting all the whitewashed wallboards up in the master suite and upstairs at the main house, and installing drywall in the two guest bedrooms downstairs. 

I have been back in Tarrytown, NY, a trip I had planned months ago to attend a good friend's wedding, and then celebrate my birthday. I return to Hawaii on October 6th. While I feel slightly guilty at being away during the run-up to disaster, the lava and its aftermath will consume me for quite a while once I return. Waves of sadness and sorrow wash over me and make me shudder to the depths of my soul. I worry for our friends and the larger community of Puna. Say a prayer for us all! But we all located where we are knowing that the island of Hawaii is an active volcano. In the end, the flow of lava is part of the fabric of life of our island, and we will adapt, survive and thrive anew. 

The picture quality is not great this blog, my apologies. I took more pictures than usual with my iPhone, and our contractor sent me pictures with low resolution. But be sure to click (or cut and paste) the first link. 
http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/news/local-news/video-new-footage-lava-passing-kaohe-homesteads-puna
It's a video of the lava burning its way through the jungle. 
The second link is to the HVO.gov site and their great daily updates on the "June 27 Flow" as this eruption is called. Cruise around the site, I had you land on the photos and videos part. 
http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/multimedia/index.php?newSearch=true&display=custom&volcano=1&resultsPerPage=20

Master bedroom with wiring and plumbing

House exterior painted green with brown trim and accents. The idea is to make it fade into the background. 

Kitchen island taking shape in foreground

Ceiling fan & light wiring

Capiz shell doors taking shape!

Dramatic night view from Pahoa toward the June 27 flow

Solar is up and ready to run!

Fourteen solar panels here, and four more on the back roof

Master suite painted

hvo.gov updates this and other maps daily. Our house is near the Route "130" ( 130 inside a circle) in the bottom center of the map below where it says "Black Sands".
It's NOT in the forecast path of the June 27 flow. 

Volcanologists are cool and crazy people. Here they're measuring the lava flow through a "window" or skylight. Through the hole you can see rivers of lava flowing...right below where these two are working.

Hurricane Iselle, Robert's visit, plumbing, staining, and sliders

Robert inspecting the property on his first visit since late February

There has never been a direct hit by a hurricane on the Big Island in recorded history...until August 7. Iselle blew through with a vengeance, laying waste to neighborhoods to the North and West of where I am renting, and where our house is under construction. Our contractor Bob Kirk had his crew spend a few days prepping the site for the winds and rain, and it paid off. No damage occurred at the house. A large yellow bamboo was blown over, and quite a few ancient Ohi'a trees were toppled. It took me a week of hard work to pick up all the other debris from the driveway, Vireya trail, and other areas of the property with a showering of limbs, leaves, and plants taken down by the winds.

The worst of it was the power at my rental house went out August 7 at 4 PM. It didn't return until August 16th at 3 PM. Since the water is powered by electric pumps, we had no water, power, wifi for 9 days! The good news is that our house under construction is all solar, off the grid, even with a propane generator for emergency backup. I won't have to deal with HI Electric Company ever, which is a good thing!

After Iselle, construction resumed. The metal roofs of both structures are now complete. Bob Kirk, our contractor, finished staining the concrete floors and deck of the main house. With that done, he invited in the plumber who did the pipes on both the main house and the master suite this week. Next week, the electrician and solar electric guys come do their wiring and installations.

The best news for me personally was the arrival of my husband Robert Welsch for his first visit since late February. He added new eyes and energy to the housebuilding project, and applied his unique talents to making the garden look amazing! Welcome Robert!

Earlier this week Robert, Bob Kirk, Eric (one of Bob's carpenters) and I laid out the ornamental wood with capiz shell doors that will be the sliding door coverage for the master and the main house. Bob Kirk's crew will build them into sliding panels with screens on top. We will add other Balinese touches like this throughout both structures. As a matter of fact, my husband Robert Welsch and I went shopping in Kona this weekend to see what else we can add to help with accents on the house.

Guest bedroom 2 shower pan with the wet concrete. 

Robert thinking....

The plumber in the foreground working on the kitchen pipes, and Dave working in the background on the kitchen window. 

Plumber may be expelled from the union, no plumbers crack showing!

Plumbing in the master bathroom...inside. 

Bob and Robert discuss exterior lighting while standing in front of the outdoor shower. 

Good shot of the newly stained concrete deck that Bob Kirk artfully completed. 

We had a crew of five helping in the garden on Wednesday. Here Chris the sawyer and bucket machine driver spreads soil over some bare spots on the lawn. 

Cory takes care of the garden twice a week. Here she's removing the cages around the citrus grove since we are putting in a pig fence and have no more need for cages. 

Chris and Cory discuss next steps in their day of making the lawn and garden shine!

 Opening up the capiz shell door frame crates.

Laying out the capiz shell frames to decide which ones go where. They are destined for the two large openings, one in the ocean view side of the main house, and the other in the large door opening in the master bedroom. 

Bob and Eric measure the frame for size. 

Close up of the carving on the panel. 

Close up of the capiz shells. 

This is the morning of the hurricane. Talk about a nice portent!

Chris working on digging a deeper hole for the 30 foot yellow bamboo that was toppled by Iselle. 

View of the completed roof on the master BR from the main house

Robert and Bob Kirk, the contractor, catching up after Robert's being away for 6 months

The happy new homeowner seeing all the progress

Although this looks like an art project, it's a new shoot of a palm tree. 

One of the many unknown orchids that bloom and wink at us from the jungle. 

Robert checking out a couple of downed Ohi'a trees post-Iselle. 

Everything under roof already!

Six months after groundbreaking, the roofs on both the main house and the master bedroom suite are close to complete. Progress for the past couple of months has been quick and visually stimulating. Once the final touches are on the roofs by the end of this week, Bob Kirk will turn over the project to the plumber first, then the electrician, and finally the solar sub. The daily "oohs and ahhs" I have been having with the raising of the roofs will be replaced by, "oh, plumbing pipes, how nice". They're needed, but not as fun to watch going in as seeing the house take shape from ground to roof!

For a few months I had been second guessing our decision to pickle all the exposed wood. It was a relatively significant added cost, and the work has taken a long time. But now that the finished product is installed, the good news is that it looks great! Having the pickled white wood everywhere lightens and brightens what is already a very airy, open feeling house and master suite. Pretty much all the wood you see in the pictures is pickled-let me know what you think!

Note that there are a lot of pictures of the landscaping. It always looks good, and I was inspired one day to document the myriad colors and textures that Robert has planted and nurtured starting in 2009.

If you haven't watched any of the videos yet, this is the one to watch (right below)! My husband Robert took it after showing me how to do a "trust fall" back into uluhe ferns to move them away from other plants. Watch what happens, it's only 35 seconds long. Aloha!