Iceland Declares State Of Emergency Over Volcanic Eruption Alert (Image:unspalsh.com)
Iceland experienced a series of 800 earthquakes within 14 hours, predicted a possible volcanic eruption
Iceland, the Northern European country, experienced a series of 800 earthquakes within 14 hours in the country”s southwestern Reykjanes peninsula. Following the events, a state of emergency was declared on Friday for the nation, where a volcanic eruption is predicted. The residents of Grindavik were also ordered to evacuate the town and the government of Iceland is closely monitoring the situation.
“The Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management has declared an Emergency/Distress Phase on the Reykjanes peninsula, due to increased seismic activity. All residents of Grindavík are obliged to evacuate the town”, said the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs on X (formerly Twitter).
The Government of Iceland continues to monitor the situation in close collaboration with the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management and the Icelandic Meteorological Office.
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— MFA Iceland 🇮🇸 (@MFAIceland) November 11, 2023
Iceland reportedly has 33 active volcanic systems in total, highest in Europe. The landscape of the country is quite dramatic with volcanoes, geysers, hot springs and lava fields. Massive glaciers are protected in Vatnajökull and Snæfellsjökull national parks. Most of the population lives in the capital, Reykjavik, which runs on geothermal power and is home to the National and Saga museums, tracing Iceland’s Viking history.
The village of Grindavik, home to about 4,000 people, is located 1.86 miles (3km) south-west of the area where Friday’s earthquake swarm was registered. The evacuation process ended around one o’clock in Saturday morning, and the government, police, and Meteorological Office are continuing in service with necessary precautions and securities.
“Earthquakes can become larger than those that have occurred and this series of events could lead to an eruption”, warned the administration through an official statement. According to the Icelandic Met Office (IMO), an eruption could take place “in several days”. As per the preliminary IMO figures, the biggest tremor had a magnitude of 5.2, north of Grindavik. The Police also closed the road running north-south to Grindavik on Friday after it was damaged by the tremors. Some 24,000 tremors have been registered on the peninsula since late October, according to the IMO, with “a dense swarm” of nearly 800 quakes registered between midnight and 1400 GMT Friday, reported NDTV.
