Guatemalan authorities evacuated more than 1,000 people and closed a road as Central America’s most active volcano erupted on Thursday, spewing thick clouds of ash over farms and towns not far from the capital city.
Civil protection official Oscar Cossio said 1,054 people had been evacuated from five communities near the foot of the volcano, and moved to a sports hall for shelter.
He said that the number was likely to rise as a full accounting of the evacuees was carried out.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Guatemala’s Conred disaster center said the volcano named Fuego, Spanish for “fire,” was sending out a high-temperature mix of gas, ash and rock fragments that “descend with great speed down the flanks of the volcanic complex.”
The ash column ejected by Fuego reached more than 6,000m above sea level.
Conred said ash was falling to the west and southwest of the volcano, in a direction away from the capital Guatemala City, which is 22km to the northeast.
Stronger emissions could follow as the “high level” eruption continues, and said that mudslides could form with rainfall forecast.
Conred official Rodolfo Garcia estimated that 130,000 people live within areas exposed to falling ash, which came down as far as 100km from the crater.
He said 13 emergency shelters had opened in four nearby towns, capable of providing refuge to 7,600 people. The authorities opted to close the RN-14 route on the slopes of the volcano that connects several towns to the colonial city of Antigua, the country’s main tourist attraction and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
It advised those living in areas at risk of the ash cloud to carefully follow any instruction from the authorities, and urged locals and tourists to avoid a restricted area of 7km around the volcano.
Residents were advised to cover water tanks to avoid contamination, wear masks so as not to breath in the ash, clear fallen debris from the roofs of their homes to prevent damage caused by heavy deposits, and have evacuation survival kits ready for themselves and their pets.
Police released photos showing automobiles and motorcycles stopped along highways to avoid being bogged down in fallen ash.
An eruption of lava and ash by the same volcano in December last year forced Guatemalan authorities to temporarily close the country’s largest airport.
The 3,763m tall volcano erupts every four to five years.
In 2018, an eruption sent rivers of lava pouring down its sides, devastating the village of San Miguel Los Lotes, killing 215 people and leaving a similar number missing.
Guatemala has two other active volcanoes — Santiaguito in the west of the country and Pacaya in the south.
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