November 1790 Eruption of Kilauea
Kilauea in the United States erupted in November 1790 with a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 4. The eruption killed 5,405 people.
Where it erupted
Kilauea, United States, with its other significant eruptions.
The eruption
- Date
- November 1790
- Volcano
- Kilauea, shield volcano
- Country
- United States
- Volcanic Explosivity Index
- 4, large (eruption column 10 to 25 km)
- Killed by
- Pyroclastic flows, surges and direct blasts
- Location
- 19.421° N, 155.287° W
The toll
- Deaths
- 5,405
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Number of deaths variously estimated at 80 to 100. Deaths probably due to a hot, relatively ash-free base surge. Three parties of Keoua's soldiers were crossing the Kau desert, each party consisting of 80 men accompanied by their families and livestock. One party was completely exterminated, the other had a few of its members either burned to death or seriously injured, and the third party was unharmed. (reference #1412)
Recent papers have increased the number of estimated deaths from about 80 to near 400, to near 800, and lastly 5,405 from an 1834 interview of botanist David Douglas with the last of the Priests of Pele, who witnessed the catastrophe. Deaths probably due to a hot, relatively ash-free base surge. (reference #9675)
Other significant eruptions of Kilauea
More
Every eruption in 1790The 1700sKilaueaEarthquakes near Kilauea
Sources
Volcanoes and significant eruptions from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. Volcano numbers are the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program’s. NCEI event 3343.