Volcanic Eruption Looms, Iceland Declared State Of Emergency

AFP/APP

Reykjavik: After a series of powerful earthquakes rocked the country’s southwestern Reykjanes peninsula, in what could be a precursor to a volcanic eruption, Iceland declared a state of emergency on Friday.

Iceland National Police Chief declared a state of emergency for civil defence due to the intense earthquake activity at Sundhnjukagigar, north of Grindavik, according to the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management.

The administration warned that earthquakes can become larger than those that have occurred and this series of events could lead to an eruption.

The Icelandic Met Office (IMO) noted an accumulation of magma underground at a depth of about five kilometres (3.1 miles). Should it start moving towards the surface it could lead to a volcanic eruption.

The most likely scenario is that it will take several days rather than hours for magma to reach the surface. If a fissure were to appear where the seismic activity is at its highest now, lava would flow to the southeast and to the west, but not towards Grindavik, stated IMO.

The village of Grindavik, home to around 4,000 people, is located some three kilometres (1.86 miles) southwest of the area where Friday’s earthquake swarm was registered.It has evacuation plans in place in case of an eruption.

Around 1730 GMT, two strong earthquakes were felt as far away as the capital Reykjavik some 40 kilometres away, and along much of the country’s southern coast, rattling windows and household objects.

According to preliminary IMO figures, the biggest tremor had a magnitude of 5.2, north of Grindavik.

Police closed a road running north-south to Grindavik on Friday after it was damaged by the tremors.

The IMO added that some 24,000 tremors have been registered on the peninsula since late October, with a dense swarm of nearly 800 quakes registered between midnight and 1400 GMT Friday.