The awakening of the volcano was violent this Wednesday. Scientists estimate that 20 million cubic meters of magma have accumulated since the last eruption in February
This Wednesday the sirens sounded and the evacuations of residents and tourists still present in the area began while the volcano projected lava fountains nearly 50 meters high. The ground was torn more than three kilometers long.
This is the fifth eruptive episode since December. Scientists have stated that “the start of this new eruption is more powerful than that of previous eruptions“.
Earthen dikes have been erected since the first eruption to ensure that the lava follows a predefined path, notably avoiding the town of Grindavík, or the “Blue Lagoon” spa resort popular with tourists, but the power of the flow has again played tricks on the engineers, once unusually damaging the road leading to the capital Reykjavík.
The area is part of the Svartsengi volcanic system in southwest Iceland, which lay dormant for almost 800 years before to wake up in December.
Iceland, which is located above a volcanic hotspot in the North Atlantic, experiences regular eruptions. The country has around thirty active volcanoes.