Hawaii Residents Told to Evacuate or Face Arrest

Residents of a community hit the hardest by Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano have been given 24 hours to get out under a strict new mandatory evacuation order that threatens arrest for anyone who decides to stay. Harry Kim, the island’s mayor, issued the order Thursday for approximately 17 blocks of the Leilani Estates subdivision, an area that was already under voluntary evacuation orders and a curfew. The move comes as tensions are running high after nearly a month of volcanic eruptions, with a 62-year-old Leilani Estates resident arrested Wednesday for firing a handgun over the head of a neighbor he believed was a looter. Authorities said the mandatory evacuation order was decided before that incident, however, as the Kilauea volcano shows no indication of calming down. At least 75 homes have already been devoured by lava, and more than 2,000 residents have fled the area.