View of the new gas vent at the base of the eastern wall of Halemaumau crater on March 14, 2008, from the Jaggar Museum overlook.
A new gas vent from Kilauea volcano threatens to send a cloud of toxic sulfur dioxide gas into the small community of Volcano, on the edge of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
The vent is contributing to the highest levels of the gas ever measured in the area, also raising the possibility that the entire park could have to be evacuated.
Park rangers say trade winds are predicted to remain strong enough to blow the poisonous gas away from the park and Volcano.
Kilauea also produced its first explosive eruption in the Halemaumau crater since 1924. No one was injured when the blast sent debris raining down over a broad area just before 3 a.m. local time on Thursday.
Jim Kauahikaua , a scientist at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said rock debris damaged the crater overlook.
