Iceland volcano eruption sparks travel fears, risky photo shoots

“I simply made it to the volcano … my thoughts is totally blown, it’s loopy,” one onlooker advised the Related Press. “The very last thing that I’d have imagined this morning after I awoke can be to be standing and this … it’s so lovely.”

One other man who had flocked to see the identical volcano erupt final 12 months mentioned it was “completely unimaginable,” describing the lava as a mesmerizing “dancing fireplace.”

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The eruption, labeled as a volcanic fissure, is happening about 10 miles from Keflavik Worldwide Airport and about 20 miles from the nation’s capital, Reykjavik. As of Thursday morning, the airport — which has flights from Seattle, London and Frankfurt — remained open and operational.

“At present, there have been no disruptions to flights to and from Iceland and worldwide flight corridors stay open,” the Overseas Ministry mentioned in a statement.

Worldwide vacationers will recall the 2010 eruption of the nation’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which spewed big ash clouds into the ambiance, grounding air site visitors and leaving hundreds of thousands stranded.

“What we all know thus far is that the eruption doesn’t pose any danger to populated areas or vital infrastructure,” Icelandic Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir mentioned in an announcement. “We’ll in fact proceed to observe the scenario intently.”

A volcanic fissure doesn’t often lead to massive explosions or vital dispersal of ash into the stratosphere. However folks have been warned to remain away due to the chance from noxious fumes and scorching magma.

“The eruption follows intense seismic exercise over the previous few days,” the Overseas Ministry mentioned. “It’s thought of to be comparatively small and as a result of its location, there may be low risk to populated areas or vital infrastructure”

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The precise location of the eruption is in Meradalir, about one mile north of Mt. Stori-Hrutur, in response to the Icelandic Meteorological Workplace.

The realm has skilled “robust earthquakes” in current days, it added, warning of tremors, falling rocks and gasoline air pollution. The identical volcano additionally erupted final 12 months, it said, and lasted about six months.

Volcanoes are a reality of life in Iceland, a rustic that sits atop the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, attributable to the separation of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. On average, the nation experiences a volcanic occasion about each 4 years.

Nevertheless, the identical geological exercise can also be answerable for a number of the nation’s most dramatic pure options, equivalent to black sand seashores and geothermal lagoons, which draw hundreds of thousands of overseas vacationers.

The present volcanic response is being led by Iceland’s division of Civil Safety and Emergency Administration alongside the Meteorological Workplace and College of Iceland. Scientists are additionally within the space with Coast Guard helicopters to evaluate the scenario, the federal government mentioned.