One of Hawaiʻi Island’s geological marvels is no more — the 90-foot Hōlei Sea Arch in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park has collapsed.
Most areas of the park closed ahead of Hurricane Nolo, which passed by Hawaiʻi Island last weekend. Claims that the arch was gone started circulating on social media after the park reopened on Sunday.
HVNP confirmed the arch had collapsed in a Facebook post on Wednesday. It did not state whether storm conditions, such as high surf, from Nolo contributed to the arch’s collapse.
The distinctive arch, carved out of the surrounding cliffside by powerful waves, had long been unstable. A large section of the arch fell off in 2022, and the park warned it could completely collapse at any time.
The Hōlei Sea Arch stood for more than five centuries — a mere blink of an eye in geological time. A sign, erected before the arch’s collapse, tells visitors at the Hōlei viewpoint that the arch was a “temporary display of nature’s handiwork.”
On Wednesday afternoon, there were about a dozen cars parked at the base of Chain of Craters Road, the nearly 19-mile drive that leads from Kīlauea’s summit to a viewpoint for the sea arch on Hawaiʻi Island’s coast.
Some visitors told HPR that park staff informed them that the sea arch was gone, but Fahad Shaon and Samira Farhin hadn’t gotten word before they made the winding drive to the coast.
Still, Shaon and Farhin told HPR they were glad they had made the trip.
“The cliffs are really awesome. Even if without the sea arch, I think it's worth the drive, and it's worth spending some moments (here),” Shaon said.
