Volcano is erupting on Hawaii's biggest island as officials issue a 'code red'

Experts have warned that volcanic gasses are billowing into the sky following the eruption and could pose a danger to people.

The volcano Kilauea in Hawaii is currently erupting, and experts are scrambling to figure out the level of danger to people.

The US Geological Survey has given updates about the eruption and explained they have now have issued a warning.

They also confirmed that there had been elevated earthquake activity beneath the summit.

In a statement USGS said: “Kīlauea volcano is erupting. Elevated earthquake activity beneath the summit began at approximately 2 a.m. HST this morning, December 23. By 2:30 a.m.

“The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory observed eruptive activity in Kīlauea summit webcam images, indicating that an eruption has commenced within Halemaʻumaʻu and the summit caldera in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

“The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is elevating Kīlauea’s volcano alert level from ADVISORY to WARNING and its aviation color code from YELLOW to RED as this eruption and associated hazards are evaluated."

The governmental body said they would continue to monitor the situation and report any significant changes.

Regarding the volcanic gasses being emitted, the National Park Service has warned against people trying to see the volcano in person. They added that the gasses ‘present a danger to everyone’.

Ken Hon of the USGS spoke to local news station KHON and addressed how quickly the situation had changed.

They said: “This one came on really fast.

“What we saw was a swarm of earthquakes as a crack opened up and allowed magma to come from the magma chamber up to the surface.”

A line of fissures was seen with lava fountains at the base of Halemaʻumaʻu.

This was initially reaching heights of around 300 feet but has since stabilized and fallen to lower levels greater than 100 feet.

The USGS has also given a brief run down of the Kilauea volcano, stating: “It is a shield volcano located on the eastern slope of Mauna Loa Volcano on the Island of Hawaii.

“The volcano is considered to be in the shield-building stage of Hawaiian volcanism.”

However eruptions aren’t exactly rare, as it has erupted dozens of times over the past few decades and five eruptions have taken place since 2020. The most recent eruption, prior to this one, was back in September.

Over the past several years, eruptions at the Kīlauea summit have lasted anywhere from two weeks to more than a year.