‘Oh my God! The volcano is erupting’: Kilauea visitors treated to fiery show

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK (HawaiiNewsNow) - Around 2:30 a.m. Monday, a mesmerizing spectacle from Kilauea volcano got sleeping hotel guests at the Hawaii Volcano House out of their beds.

Ben Greene heard banging on his door and a commotion.

“I hear somebody yell, ‘Oh my God! The volcano is erupting,’” said Greene, who’s from St. Louis, Missouri.

He pulled back the curtain.

“I said ‘Oh my God! The volcano is erupting. Everybody needs to wake up right now,’” he added.

Greene ran outside with no jacket or shoes on in the 50-degree weather to see Pele’s power.

He had a one-night stay at the hotel, which is the only one at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, so he says the stars were in alignment to see this.

“The whole floor of the crater was filling up with lava, which was just glowing and the fountains were really dramatic. Smoke was going in all different directions,” Greene said.

The hotel has a huge picture window overlooking Halemaumau Crater, giving hotel guests and those stopping by a rare and comfortable view.

“We have the best seat in the house. We are so lucky that we are actually here to see it in person,” said Collette Chee, who’s from California.

Artists at Volcano Garden Arts in Volcano Village say their art gallery is normally busy during the holidays and they expect business to easily double as more people come to see the eruption.

“I’m very excited. Christmas is a busy time of year anyway, but certainly any time there’s a flow of lava at the volcano, it draws even more people up,” said Craig Lawver, Volcano Garden Arts, artist and gallery assistant.

For lava watchers and businesses, Christmas came early.

“I know it’s special and spiritual for a lot of people so the power and the magic of this moment is not lost on me,” said Greene.

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