New Quakes Hit Hawaii after Kilauea Volcano Erupts, Hundreds Flee

PAHOA, Hawaii (Reuters) - GA series of fresh earthquakes on Friday, including a powerful magnitude 6.9, hit Hawaii's Big Island, where the Kilauea volcano has been spewing fountains of lava into residential areas and forcing hundreds to evacuate.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the strongest tremor at 12:32 p.m. (2332 GMT) measured 6.9, a magnitude capable of causing severe damage.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quake, whose epicenter was on the south flank of the volcano, was not large enough to cause a tsunami although it generated sea level changes around the island of up 15.7 inches.

It caused buildings to shake at the Community Center in Pahoa town, one of two evacuation centers in the area hastily set up after lava started burbling up through fissures in the ground in neighborhoods nearby.

A new fissure opened up just before the latest tremor on Friday in one of those neighborhoods, Leilani Estates, about a dozen miles (19 km) from the volcano, the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency said in a text message, making a total of four found so far.

Kilauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes and one of five on the island, has been in constant eruption for 35 years. Lava flows from the volcano have covered 48 square miles (125 square km), according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Scientists say it is nearly impossible to predict how long an eruption will last.

On Thursday, Kilauea began spewing lava into residential areas after a series of earthquakes over the past week, the USGS reported on its website. Starting around 11 a.m. on Friday, the island experienced a flurry of earthquakes, culminating in the massive magnitude 6.9 tremor.

Residents in Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens subdivisions, home to...