Iceland volcano eruption dwell: New crack types and lava flows into homes for first time

At least three houses have been set alight after lava from a volcanic eruption hit the fishing city of Grindavik. Much of the city was protected by defensive partitions which had been constructed on the onset of intense seismic actions in November.

The 4,000 inhabitants have been evacuated as a precaution.

Simon Calder, Travel Correspondent studies:

Much of the fishing city has been protected by defensive partitions which had been constructed throughout intense seismic actions final yr, however no less than three houses have been engulfed as a consequence of lava breaching boundaries north of the city, officers mentioned.

Almost 4,000 residents have been evacuated, though some livestock weren’t capable of be moved.

Sophie Thompson and Holly Patrick report:

An skilled fears the “worst-case scenario” has change into the truth in Iceland as lava has flowed into individuals’s houses for the primary time after a brand new crack fashioned.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office mentioned the volcano within the southwest of the nation erupted for the second time in lower than a month on Sunday, suspecting the fissure had since compelled itself underneath the city of Grindavik.

A brand new crack later fashioned, mentioned the forecaster, with lava flowing into the fishing city and torching no less than three houses.

When requested if the worst-case situation had occurred, Benedikt Halldórsson, an skilled in earthquake exercise on the Icelandic Meteorological Office, advised The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service: “Yes, I don’t think it’s possible to imagine anything worse than it erupting in a settlement and lava flowing onto houses.”

A volcano has erupted within the Grindavík space of south west Iceland this morning (14 January), days after residents had been ordered to go away when volcanic fissures started opening on close by roads.

The order is anticipated to be in place for no less than three weeks which can trigger a number of disruption, notably as Grindavík performs home to the long-lasting Blue Lagoon vacationer attraction.

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A passenger on a airplane heading over Iceland has shared footage of the view of Grindavik’s volcano eruption from the sky.

In the footage, lava will be seen spilling down the volcano, which has since reached the evacuated city, and despatched a number of houses up in flames.

At least three homes within the fishing village of Grindavik had been destroyed in lava, authorities mentioned, including that the eruption within the fissure has largely subsided.

“It seems to us that it has almost stopped, the lava flow by these houses,” says Böðvar Sveinsson, a pure catastrophe skilled on the Icelandic Meteorological Office.

The eruption took place on Sunday north of the city following a sequence of earthquakes close to the city of Grindavik.

The neighborhood of almost 4000 individuals was evacuated in a single day, Iceland’s RUV tv reported.

A British couple on vacation in Iceland mentioned it was “alarming” to see a volcano erupting within the southwest of the nation as they travelled to the airport on Sunday.

Lorraine Crawford, 67, and her 70-year-old husband John, from Essex, took a visit to Reykjavik on Thursday together with Mr Crawford’s cousin, Michael Daltrey, and his spouse, Faye.

The group had been in a taxi on their technique to Keflavik International Airport on Sunday morning to return to the UK when Ms Crawford mentioned they noticed the erupting volcano within the distance and initially thought it was a hearth.

“It’s alarming in a way – it’s quite exciting to see something like that but then you realise that this could do quite a lot of damage,” Ms Crawford, who runs a journey company together with her husband and their daughter, advised the PA information company.

“On the way (to the airport), we thought it was just a fire in the distance but (the taxi driver) said it was the actual volcano erupting.”

She added that they’d heard a “really loud noise” and a “really loud rumble” from the airport, however they weren’t positive what had prompted it.

Much of the lava move from the volcano eruption was diverted from Grindavik as a result of protecting barrier dams constructed across the city, the Icelandic Met Office mentioned.

Since November, defensive partitions had been placed across the volcano in hopes of directing the magma away from the neighborhood.

But the partitions of the boundaries constructed north of Grindavik have been breached by the lava, which engulfed no less than three homes.

“This continues to surprise us,” mentioned Benedikt Ofeigsson, a geophysicist on the Meteorological Office.