The village of Grindavík has been ordered to evacuate tonight, as the intensified earthquakes herald a volcanic eruption.
The police chief of Suðurnes has decided late Friday evening local time to evacuate the village of Grindavík in Iceland. Tells about it Icelandic public broadcaster RÚV.
Earlier on Friday, Icelandic authorities declared a state of emergency after strong earthquakes rocked the Reykjanes peninsula in the southwest of the country. They show that the probability of a volcanic eruption has increased in the area.
– Iceland’s police chief has declared a state of emergency to protect the population in Sundhnjukagigar due to a strong earthquake north of Grindavík, security officials said in a statement.
– The earthquakes may be stronger in the future, and the series of events may lead to a volcanic eruption, the statement stated.
All 4,000 residents of the village of Grindavík have now been ordered to leave the area within the next couple of hours. Information from the Icelandic Meteorological Institute IMO shows that the magma tunnel now extends below the village. Many of the villagers have already left their homes in fear of a volcanic eruption. The local security authorities cannot say how close to the earth’s surface the magma tunnel has risen, but according to them the progress has been fast in the last hours.
Natural hazards expert of the Icelandic Meteorological Institute by Elísabet Pálmadóttir according to the probability of a volcanic eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula has increased with the events of last night. However, he emphasizes that it is impossible to say whether there will be an eruption or where exactly the magma would erupt.
According to the current information, the operation of the nearby Keflavík airport continues as normal.
The village of Grindavík is located about three kilometers southwest of the area where a series of earthquakes were registered on Friday. The two strong earthquakes that occurred around 6:30 in the evening local time were felt even in the capital Reykjavik, about 40 kilometers away. According to IMO’s preliminary data, the magnitude of the largest earthquake was 5.2.
According to the IMO, around 24,000 earthquakes have been registered on the Reykjanes peninsula since the end of October. On Friday, almost 800 earthquakes were registered in the area between midnight and 2 p.m. Their cause is the movement of volcanic magma under the peninsula. Its upward movement can lead to a volcanic eruption.
Source: RÚV, AFP