A volcano erupted in Iceland – a four-kilometer-long fissure
The night sky lights up after a volcanic eruption in southwest Iceland
Source: Brynjar Gunnarsson/AP
A volcano has erupted in Iceland. The explosion was expected; There were repeated earthquakes. A video shows a roughly four-kilometer-long fissure spewing lava. An expert says the volcanic masses are much larger than previous eruptions.
NAfter weeks of earthquakes, a volcano erupted in southwest Iceland. “WARNING: The eruption started north of Grindavik near Hagafel,” the country’s weather office said on its website on Monday. Images and photos from Platform X showed orange-red glowing volcanic fountains shooting into the dark night sky, illuminating it brightly.
The fissure widened overnight and grew to about four kilometers by early morning, the volcanologist said. According to experts, the crack is several times longer than the eruptions on the Reykjanes peninsula in recent years. The flow of lava is also very large, about 100 to 200 cubic meters per second coming out of the eruption. Civil Defense has declared a state of emergency.
Volcanologist Arman Haskultsson said the fissure extends towards Grindavík. Fortunately, the lava did not flow towards the power plants there. The building is not currently in danger, he said. Höskuldsson told Icelandic radio station RÚV that he estimated the eruption would last between a week and ten days. The nearby Keflavik International Airport in Reykjavík was initially open.
Iceland’s President Gutni Johansson wrote on Facebook that it was not yet clear what damage the explosion would cause. He asked local people to follow all the recommendations of the emergency services “at this critical moment”. According to media reports, police have asked visitors not to approach the volcano.
Thousands of earthquakes have occurred in the region in the past two months. Fearing an eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula, authorities have already evacuated nearly 4,000 residents of the fishing village of Grindavik last month and closed the Blue Lagoon geothermal bath, popular with tourists.
Iceland lies between the Eurasian and North American plates. As the plates move in opposite directions, the island nation experiences repeated earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. In 2010, the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano forced hundreds of Icelanders from their homes. Around 10,000 flights were cancelled.
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