Icelandic authorities have declared a state of emergency due to the eruption of a volcano near the city of Grindavik, a small fishing municipality on the Reikjanes peninsula, about 60 kilometers from Reykjavík, the capital. The eruption has been preceded by a series of earthquakes in the Sundhnjúka crater, so it has been decided to evacuate the entire area.
Um Grindavík og gosið:
-Lögreglustjórinn á Suðurnesjum segir búið að kalla viðbragðsaðila sem voru í Grindavík út úr bænum. Bærinn á að vera mannlaus.
-Gosið er staðsett nálægt Sundhnúksgígum um 4 km norðaustur af Grindavík.
-Gossprungan gæti lengst í áttina að Grindavík. pic.twitter.com/DPJzow7ibt— Fréttastofa RÚV (@RUVfrettir) December 19, 2023
The estimated length of the fissure is about 3.5 kilometers, considerably greater than that of previous eruptions, and the speed of the lava flow is between 100 and 200 cubic meters per second, which is also a notable increase compared to other eruptions that have occurred on the peninsula in recent years.
«An eruption has begun near the evacuated city of Grindavik. Our priorities remain protecting lives and infrastructure. Civil Defense has closed the affected area. Now we wait to see what the forces of nature have in store for us. “We are prepared and we remain vigilant,” the country's president, Gudni Johannesson, has published on the social network account X, before Twitter.
For his part, the Icelandic Foreign Minister, Bjarni Benediktsson, has assured that no flights have been interrupted either to or from Iceland, and that international air traffic remains open.
According to data from the Icelandic Meteorological Office, seismic activity is moving south, so the eruption could extend in the direction of Grindavik. The Reikjanes peninsula has suffered several eruptions in unpopulated areas in recent years. In March 2021, lava fountains emerged. Volcanic activity in the area continued for six months that year, prompting thousands of Icelanders and tourists to visit the site. A three-week eruption occurred in the same area in August 2022, followed by another in July of the same year.
#Iceland #declares #state #emergency #due #eruption #volcano #Grindavik