The second volcanic eruption in just a few weeks has begun in Iceland. In live footage from the Icelandic radio station RÚV on Sunday morning, glowing red lava bubbled out of a long crack in the earth on the Reykjanes Peninsula southwest of Reykjavik for the first time since mid-December.
A few hours before the eruption, the Icelandic meteorological agency Vedurstofa had recorded a new, intense series of earthquakes with more than 200 tremors. The initially strongest one was magnitude 3.5 early in the morning. The agency warned that magma was moving beneath the Earth’s surface and the likelihood of an eruption was high.
The town of Grindavík on the Reykjanes Peninsula had to be evacuated on Saturday. The responsible authorities ordered the renewed evacuation of the town of 4,000 residents, according to a statement from the civil protection authority based on a risk assessment by the national meteorological office. All people should leave Grindavík by Monday evening, from then on staying there will be prohibited. The place is still classified as dangerous after the earthquakes in November, and there is also an increased risk of eruptions.
The last time an eruption occurred in the area was in the late evening of December 18th, when lava initially bubbled out of a fissure in the earth several kilometers long. It was the fourth eruption on the peninsula in three years. Grindavík had already been evacuated beforehand, while the new eruption was announced by a week-long series of earthquakes.
The quakes caused major damage in the area, including deep cracks in roads. According to Icelandic media reports, a worker allegedly fell into one of these crevices a few days ago – the search for him has now been stopped without him being found.
