Kilauea Volcano’s Sporadic Eruption Resumes in Hawaii as Lava Pours Out of a Summit Vent 

This image from webcam footage provided by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) shows lava fountains shooting up high in the latest episode of an ongoing eruption of Kilauea volcano inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Thursday, March 20, 2025. (United States Geological Survey via AP)
This image from webcam footage provided by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) shows lava fountains shooting up high in the latest episode of an ongoing eruption of Kilauea volcano inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Thursday, March 20, 2025. (United States Geological Survey via AP)
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Kilauea Volcano’s Sporadic Eruption Resumes in Hawaii as Lava Pours Out of a Summit Vent 

This image from webcam footage provided by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) shows lava fountains shooting up high in the latest episode of an ongoing eruption of Kilauea volcano inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Thursday, March 20, 2025. (United States Geological Survey via AP)
This image from webcam footage provided by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) shows lava fountains shooting up high in the latest episode of an ongoing eruption of Kilauea volcano inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Thursday, March 20, 2025. (United States Geological Survey via AP)

Lava began bubbling out of Hawaii’s most active volcano once again on Tuesday as Kilauea's sporadic eruption resumed.

The eruption restarted at midday when molten rock began pouring out of a vent in Kilauea's summit caldera, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said in a statement. The lava was contained within the caldera inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and wasn't affecting any residential areas.

The volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii has been erupting on-and-off since Dec. 23. It's shot tall fountains of lava high into the air and spilled molten rock across the caldera floor each time it’s come back to life. The spectacle is a popular attraction for tourists.

The current episode is the 15th of the current eruption. The shortest of the previous episodes lasted 13 hours while the longest went on for eight days. Pauses in between episodes have ranged between 24 hours to 12 days.

Kilauea is one of six active volcanoes in Hawaii, including one that is submerged underwater. The largest is Mauna Loa, which is also on the Big Island and which erupted in 2022.



Injured Seals Get Care and Sanctuary at a New Center in the Netherlands 

A seal swims in a tank at the new seal sanctuary in Lauwersoog, northern Netherlands, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP)
A seal swims in a tank at the new seal sanctuary in Lauwersoog, northern Netherlands, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP)
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Injured Seals Get Care and Sanctuary at a New Center in the Netherlands 

A seal swims in a tank at the new seal sanctuary in Lauwersoog, northern Netherlands, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP)
A seal swims in a tank at the new seal sanctuary in Lauwersoog, northern Netherlands, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP)

Gliding gracefully through the waters at his new home, Witje pauses briefly to peer through a large window at the curious and admiring visitors.

The 4-month-old gray seal is a lucky survivor able to swim in one of nine new tanks at the World Heritage Center, or WEC, a recently opened seal rescue facility in Lauwersoog, in the north of the Netherlands.

He was brought in after being orphaned and was suffering from a swollen flipper and a damaged eye.

“On a yearly basis, we roughly treat about 200 seals,” Sander van Dijk, the curator of the center, told The Associated Press. In 2024, researchers at Wageningen University in the Netherlands counted around 24,000 seals across the Wadden Sea.

Most are pups who get separated from their mother, known as howlers for their plaintive wailing. Others are injured by floating debris or are struck by passing vessels.

“If we look at our own data over the past 15 years, we just see every year more seals that somehow get entangled in waste in the sea, mostly fishing nets,” Van Dijk said.

The WEC, which officially opened to the public Saturday, replaces the Pieterburen Seal Center, a rescue facility set up in 1971 to treat injured seals found in and around the nearby Wadden Sea, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Witje’s tank is an upgrade from his previous quarters. He gets to swim in water directly from the sea, rather than tap water, in order to maintain a habitat as close as possible to the seals’ natural environment.

“They are adapted to living in seawater. It’s good for their fur. But also seawater, through its salt, has some properties that makes wounds heal faster,” Van Dijk said.

The WEC can treat around 70 seals at a time and has 12 intensive-care units for animals with serious injuries who are able to recover in special enclosures which offer a calm environment. They are prevented from swimming in order to rest and the space is cleaned frequently to prevent infections from waste.

The new building, which cost over 40 million euros ($45 million), with financing provided by local and regional governments as well as charitable organizations, tells more than just the story of the seas. It’s an educational space which teaches visitors about the Wadden Sea, the largest continuous system of intertidal flats in the world, extending along the coasts of the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark.

The new facility is significantly closer to the sea than the previous location. The tanks for the 10 seals currently residing at WEC look out over the water. Caregivers at the center are optimistic that Witje will soon recover enough to be released back into the waves.