ICELAND:FARMERS LIVING close to the spewing Eyjafjallajökull volcano are preparing for a heavy downpour of ash today, with the Icelandic met office predicting strong northern winds in the area.
The powerful eruptions have already inflicted great damage upon the surrounding farmlands by triggering a flood of glacial meltwater down the glacier’s slopes.
The Icelandic road administration carved out gaps in the national highway close to release the pressure on a nearby bridge but flooding resumed yesterday following small earthquakes, prompting another emergency evacuation.
Residents near the glacier were encouraged to wear masks to protect their respiratory systems against potentially harmful particles and poisonous gases.
Agricultural areas have also been heavily damaged, with farmer Sigurtur Thór Thórhallsson estimating that more than half his 100-hectare grassland has been covered in volcanic mud. “This feels like asphalt concrete,” Mr Thórhallsson said.
A series of small earthquakes under the glacier late on Tuesday night gave the first indication that an eruption was imminent.
The disaster follows minor volcanic eruptions at Fimmvörthuháls, a volcanic ridge close to the Eyjafjallajökull glacier whose spectacular outbursts of lava have created what Icelanders call an “eruption for tourists”, because of its tourism revenue.
The eruptions at Eyjafjallajökull, a dormant volcano since 1821, are of a different magnitude, with Erna Hauksdóttir, director of the Icelandic Travel Industry Association, expressing grave concern about the impact of the disruption to air travel. Alongside fishery exports and aluminium smelting, tourism is regarded as one of the pillars of the economy.
Regarding the potential duration of the Eyjafjallajökull eruption, Mr Björnsson referred to an eruption that started at the same crater in December 1821 and lasted until spring 1822, albeit with reduced force at the end. The eruption then resumed in July 1822 until giving way to an eruption in the much-feared neighbouring Katla volcano in 1823.
Mr Björnsson said the same happened following an eruption in Eyjafjallajökull in 1612, activity which ended with the eruption of Katla later in the same year. However, the two volcanoes belong to the same volcano system.
“An eruption at Katla would be much more remarkable. The consequences could also be much more serious for Iceland and international air travel alike.”
Baldur Anarson writes for Morgunbladid, Iceland's oldest newspaper