A volcano in southwestern Iceland erupted on Wednesday for the fifth time since December, blasting the Sundhnjukar ridge with stunning force and sending lava 150 feet into the air.
The weather agency said signs of a possible eruption were received about two hours before the 1pm local time eruption in Grindavik, and the civil protection agency immediately urged visitors to the Blue Lagoon – the geothermal hot springs that are Iceland’s most popular tourist attraction One of the most popular destinations is evacuation.
“Evacuate, evacuate!” read a text message sent to nearly 800 guests staying at the Blue Lagoon and surrounding hotels. Civil defense alarms installed in February went off as tourists scrambled to leave.
within minutes Drivers traveling on the highway to Keflavik Airport posted photos of the nearly two-mile-long fissure in Sondjuca after the eruption. Thick smoke could be seen billowing from the capital, Reykjavik.
Spokeswoman Helga Arnadottir said this was the fifth evacuation order since the volcano first erupted last year. Anadóttir added that the evacuation process “went as smoothly as before.” She said it took about half an hour for hotel guests to evacuate.
Another 300 people had to be evacuated from Grindavik. The government has offered to buy all the homes in Grindavik so residents can be resettled elsewhere. Nearly all property owners in the area are choosing to sell.
The Icelandic Tourist Board urged people not to try to get close to the erupting volcano, and was quick to point out that the country remains a safe destination. The island nation’s economy relies heavily on tourism; airlines and travel agencies have reported a drop in sales since the volcano erupted in December. Keflavik Airport reported no disruption to flights on Wednesday.
While the eruption attracted little attention, scientists predict another volcanic event will follow the last eruption three weeks ago.
Magnus Gudmundsson, one of the first volcanologists to fly over the site, told The New York Times that Sonjuca’s fissure appears to have grown. By Wednesday evening, lava had reached barriers around Grindavik that had been put in place to divert the flow of lava away from the town.
“We saw the crack widen and a lava flow flow south towards Grindavik,” Gudmundsson said. Parts of major roads were destroyed. Mr Gudmundson added that the volcano had produced 2.1 square miles of lava, “a huge amount”.