Erupting Chilean volcano could spew ash for months
Pastor Dale Morgan
Erupting Chilean volcano could spew ash for months*
07 May 2008 17:14:23 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Antonio de la Jara
PUERTO MONTT, Chile, May 7 (Reuters) - Experts believe Chile's Chaiten
volcano could continue belching out vast clouds of ash for months but
distraught people evacuated from nearby towns say they yearn to return
as soon as possible.
Ash that has reached as far as Argentina continued to spew for a sixth
day on Wednesday, disrupting flights to the southern Patagonia region
with no sign of let-up.
"Everything is so uncertain," said Patricio Ide, 40, who was evacuated
from the remote village of Chaiten to Puerto Montt, 125 miles (200 km)
away from the volcano.
"This could last a month, three months, maybe we can never return. We
are so worried," the mechanic said through tears. A coating of ash over
6 inches (15 cm) thick has built up in places and has contaminated
ground water supplies.
Chaiten village can only be reached by boat or by air and the navy took
people out aboard warships.
The surprise eruption of the long dormant 3,280-foot (1,000-meter)
Chaiten volcano has forced the evacuation within a 30 mile (50 km)
radius of the volcano, including more than 4,500 residents of Chaiten
six miles (10 km) from it.
After a surge in activity on Tuesday, when the volcano spat hot rocks
and lava and the column of ash surged, officials said its two craters
had fused, helping ease pressure.
But the eruption continued and experts said it would be weeks and
possibly even months before residents who had to leave their belongings,
pets and lives behind could return.
EVACUEES YEARN TO RETURN
Evacuee Maria Angelica Hermosilla said she would go back the first
chance she got. "There is nothing like Chaiten," the 42-year-old said.
"Everyone knows each other, we are like a big family, there is no
violence, no muggings."
The village is nestled by a fjord some 760 miles (1,220 km) south of the
Chilean capital Santiago and is a magnet for adventure tourism, fishing
and trekking.
Sparsely populated Patagonia is the southernmost swathe of Latin America
that cuts across Chile and Argentina and is home to towering snow-capped
peaks, some of them volcanoes, glaciers and fjords.
National Emergency Office official Rodrigo Rojas said winds were pushing
the vast ash cloud into Argentina, but that it was no longer soaring
miles into the air as it did when the eruption started on Friday.
"The reason the height of the eruptive column (of ash) is lower is due
to the fact its two craters have fused into one, and that has produced a
bigger area for the column to escape from," Rojas said. But he said
there had been no lessening of the volcanic activity.
President Michelle Bachelet said it was the first time that Chile has
had to evacuate entire towns. The last residents of Futaleufu further
east were also being evacuated on Wednesday.
Luis Lara, a government geologist, said he did not expect a catastrophic
collapse of the volcano, and said any eventual lava flow would not reach
the town. But a cloud of dense, very hot material could coat the
surrounding area.
"The activity could continue for quite some time," he said. "It could be
weeks, months. It could even be years, but not with the same
characteristics -- with ups and downs."
Neighboring Argentina canceled flights to Patagonia because of the ash
cloud and closed some schools.