Leilani Estates is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, suc ...

(CDP) in Hawaiʻi County,

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, United States located in the District of Puna. The subdivision was formed in 1964. The population was 1,139 at the 2020 census, down from 1,560 at the 2010 census, and up from 1,046 at the 2000 census. The

2018 lower Puna eruption The 2018 lower Puna eruption was a volcanic event on the island of Hawaiʻi, on Kīlauea volcano's East Rift Zone that began on May 3, 2018. It is related to the larger eruption of Kīlauea that began on January 3, 1983, though some volcanolog ...

Kīlauea Kīlauea ( , ) is an active shield volcano in the Hawaiian Islands. Located along the southeastern shore of the Big Island of Hawaii, the volcano is between 210,000 and 280,000 years old and emerged above sea level about 100,000 years ago. His ...

Volcano, which occurred within and around the subdivision, claimed many homes and displaced an unknown number of Leilani Estates residents. Accessing the entire resulting solid lava rock flow field has been prohibited, as per the Mayor's 12/6/18 Emergency Proclamation, with fines up to $5,000 for violations. As of January 2019, in further effort to prevent the private subdivision from becoming a public attraction, the Leilani Community Association began enforcing regulations regarding no parking on private roads, no trespassing on private property, and no tours being conducted in the subdivision.

Geography

Leilani Estates is located near the eastern tip of the island of

. It is south of Pāhoa and south of

Hilo Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement ...

. It is bordered to the southeast by the Malama Kī Forest Reserve. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land. Leilani Estates is located directly on a stretch of the lower East

Rift Zone A rift zone is a feature of some volcanoes, especially shield volcanoes, in which a set of linear cracks (or rifts) develops in a volcanic edifice, typically forming into two or three well-defined regions along the flanks of the vent. Believed t ...

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates ...

, in lava flow hazard zone 1. Zone 1 includes the summit and rift zones of active volcanoes—new eruptive vents can spawn anywhere inside this zone. Approximately 10% or out of the of Puna have been covered by lava flows since 1790.

2018 eruption

Of the 24 total volcanic

fissure vent A fissure vent, also known as a volcanic fissure, eruption fissure or simply a fissure, is a linear volcanic vent through which lava erupts, usually without any explosive activity. The vent is often a few metres wide and may be many kilo ...

s that formed during the event, 14 erupted lava to varying degrees within Leilani Estates.

ʻAhuʻailāʻau The 2018 lower Puna eruption was a volcanic event on the island of Hawaiʻi, on Kīlauea volcano's East Rift Zone that began on May 3, 2018. It is related to the larger eruption of Kīlauea that began on January 3, 1983, though some volcanolog ...

(initially designated Fissure 8) on Luana St. was the dominant vent that produced the most output of lava, with fountaining as high as 330 feet and flow front advancement as fast as 76m/hr as it reached the ocean miles below Leilani Estates. By the time the eruption ceased on August 9 of 2018, around 200 homes had been destroyed within the subdivision.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2010, there were 1,560 people in 696 households residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 807 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 63.4%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 1.4%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 1.8% American Indian & Alaska Native, 6.1% Asian, 6.2% Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander, 1.2% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 20.0% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 9.8% of the population. There were 696 households, out of which 18.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them. The average household size was 2.24. In the Leilani Estates CDP the population was spread out, with 17.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 11.7% from 25 to 34, 17.6% from 35 to 49, 32.9% from 50 to 64, and 13.4% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 113.1 males. For every 100 males there were 88.4 females. The median income for a household in the CDP at the 2000 census was $31,540, and the median income for a family in 2000 was $32,692. Males had a median income of $30,500 versus $22,875 for females in 2000. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the CDP in 2000 was $15,522. About 13.7% of families and 21.9% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

in 2000, including 16.4% of those under age 18 and 25.5% of those age 65 or over.

References

{{Hawaii County, Hawaii Census-designated places in Hawaii County, Hawaii Populated places on Hawaii (island) Kīlauea