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Almost two dozen people were injured by debris from the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii, on Monday. Sunday, the U.S. Geological Survey advised that a “major volcano eruption is imminent, underway, or suspected” from the continuously spewing volcano.
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Captain and owner of the boat, Shane Turpin, remarked that there was nothing unusual prior to him navigating the boat within 250 yards of the volcanic site. “As we were exiting the zone, all of a sudden everything around us exploded,” Turpin told The Associated Press. “It was everywhere.”
At least 23 people were hurt after a lava explosion caused projectiles to strike and rip through the roof of a boat carrying tourists, during a sightseeing tour.
“What I saw in humanity this morning was amazing. I mean this was a group of people that never met before, and they were brought together,” he said. "In all honesty, we definitely evaded a catastrophic event today."
According to the Hawaii County Fire Department, emergency response transferred four passengers were to a medical facility while nine others sought treatment unassisted. Two people were hospitalized in stable condition and one other sustained a fracture. Several other passengers suffered burns, scrapes and superficial injuries.
Officials reports are that 10 other passengers were treated at the scene.
Fissure 8 of Hawaii's Kilauea volcano has continued to spew lava since its initial eruption May 3. The U.S. Coast Guard had instituted a safety zone, prohibiting vessels from being more than 300 meters from ocean-entry points of the lava.
The volcano has covered some 9.6 square miles or 6,144 acres with lava since the eruptions began.
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