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| Volcano in Ecuador spews huge column of ash | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: 15 Aug 2015, 12:48 AM (108 Views) | |
| skibboy | 15 Aug 2015, 12:48 AM Post #1 |
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14 August 2015 Volcano in Ecuador spews huge column of ash © AFP | Ashes rise above Cotopaxi volcano in the Andes mountains, about 50km south of Quito, on August 14, 2015 QUITO (AFP) - A volcano in Ecuador spewed a column of ash five kilometers (3 miles) high on Friday, prompting officials to raise the alert level. The ash was preceded overnight by two small explosions from the crater, the Geophysics Institute said on Twitter. The Cotopaxi volcano stands 5,897 meters (19,500 feet) high and is located 45 kilometers (30 miles) south of the capital Quito. The Geophysics Institute said Cotopaxi is one of the most dangerous volcanos in the world because of the large amount of snow at its peak and because nearby areas are densely populated. The government's emergency management agency raised the alert level in areas near the volcano to yellow, which is in the middle of the scale. The Environment Ministry declared the volcano off limits to tourists. Source:
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| skibboy | 16 Aug 2015, 12:36 AM Post #2 |
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15 August 2015 Ecuador villages evacuated as Cotopaxi volcano rumbles to life © AFP/File | Residents try to clean off the grass so their cattle is not intoxicated in Pichincha province, Ecuador on August 14, 2015, as the Cotopaxi volcano continues to spew ashes on the horizon LATACUNGUA (ECUADOR) (AFP) - Several villages in Ecuador were evacuated Saturday, as the Cotopaxi volcano rumbled to life, angrily spewing ash into the sky and threatening nearby residents with potential volcanic landslides. Officials said the evacuations were ordered as a precautionary measure, as Cotopaxi became increasingly active, but that no landslides had yet been recorded. Several towns and river settlements in Cotopaxi province, some 45 kilometers (28 miles) south of the capital Quito, were cleared, said Pablo Morillo, head of the Secretariat for Risk Management. Authorities maintained a yellow alert in the region, a mid-range warning, and said it would remain as long as Cotopaxi continued to stir. "We will maintain the same alert, but since there are still no lahar flows, the evacuation order is still only preventive," Morillo told AFP. The volcano, which towers to 5,897 meters high (19,000 feet), is considered to be one of the most threatening in the region -- both because of its size and because it is so close to well-populated towns. Cotopaxi registered several eruptions on Friday, following decades of inactivity, spewing ash columns as high as eight kilometers into the sky. The volcano spewed a current of hot glass and rock -- called pyroclastic flow -- which authorities warned could trigger avalanches or landslides of volcanic debris, also known as lahars. "Due to the pyroclastic flows that can generate lahars, preventative evacuations (are ordered) on the southern part" of the volcano, the Risk Management office said on Twitter. The Geophysical Institute also cautioned residents: "At present there have been no lahars, but they could occur." Officials did not specify how many people could be affected by the evacuation order, though residents could be seen piling out of towns Saturday, wrapped in blankets and sitting on the side of the road. Quito Mayor Mauricio Rodas said one million surgical masks would be distributed across the city of 2.3 million people, to prevent inhalation of falling dust. Some residents could be seen wearing masks Friday as they fled villages, with a large, angry cloud of gray dust and ash forming over Cotopaxi. The Environment Ministry has declared the volcano off limits to tourists, and 15 climbers who were preparing to scale the mountain were sent home Friday. Cotopaxi is one of eight active volcanoes in Ecuador, a country that is part of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire that makes it prone to seismic and volcanic events. Its snow covered tip has been described as "majestic" and is a popular climbing destination among hikers. There are several other inactive volcanoes in the country, which is in the northern Andean volcanic belt. Source:
Edited by skibboy, 16 Aug 2015, 12:37 AM.
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| skibboy | 17 Aug 2015, 12:11 AM Post #3 |
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16 August 2015 Ecuador volcano quiet after prompting state of emergency © AFP/File / by Rodrigo Buendia | Cotopaxi volcano spewing ashes in Pichincha province, Ecuador on August 14, 2015 LASSO (ECUADOR) (AFP) - After rumbling and belching ash, the Cotopaxi volcano was silent Sunday, hours after Ecuador declared a state of emergency and fearful residents were evacuated. "Monitoring of the Cotopaxi volcano last night and this morning indicated no increase in activity," Ecuador's Ministry of Security Coordination said in a statement. The agency is the only source authorized to speak on the matter after Ecuador issued a "preventative censorship," which President Rafael Correa defended as a means of avoiding false rumors that could unleash panic. Most of the evacuees live along Cotopaxi province's river communities and remained in shelters. The volcano started to stir Friday, registering several small eruptions and angrily shooting plumes of dust and ash eight kilometers (five miles) into the sky. Cotopaxi, which towers to 5,897 meters (19,350 feet) high, is considered one of the most threatening volcanoes in the region -- both because of its size and because it is so close to well-populated towns. - 'Very quiet here' - Residents in the village of Lasso, which sits within the volcanic zone, took advantage of the relative calm to resume their daily activities. "Today, it's very quiet here. I see that businesses have opened and cars are passing by as normal... it was chaos yesterday," said Jaqueline Sojos, who runs a small hotel in the town. "From my house, you can see this beautiful (volcano)... I have never been afraid of it," the 42-year-old told AFP. The last time Cotopaxi erupted was in 1877. On Saturday, residents of various communities left their homes in droves, alarmed by sirens and calls to evacuate to avoid potential avalanches from the volcano's increased activity. Hours later, some returned home after authorities ruled out imminent risk. An estimated one million people live in the volcano's area of influence, which includes parts of Cotopaxi, Napo and Pichincha provinces. On Saturday, Correa declared a state of emergency for up to 60 days, allowing him to mobilize military and police for security and relief work and freeing up financial resources. The censorship measures pertained only to communication about the volcano, including on social networks. - Popular with tourists - Located just 45 kilometers south of the capital Quito, Cotopaxi is one of eight active volcanoes in Ecuador and is a magnet for tourists and hikers. Volcanic activity forced the closure of the nature reserve on which it is located. Sojos said six Colombian tourists who were staying at her hotel had left. "I think it will affect us a lot, but when it settles down, because it's a tourist zone, I think we will do double business," she said. Ecuador is part of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire that makes it prone to seismic and volcanic events. by Rodrigo Buendia Source:
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| skibboy | 18 Aug 2015, 01:15 AM Post #4 |
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17 August 2015 Cotopaxi volcano threatens more than 300,000 Ecuadorans © AFP/File | View of an ash cloud from the Cotopaxi volcano, from the city of Machachi, Ecuador on August 15, 2015 QUITO (AFP) - Nearly 325,000 people could be affected by an eruption of Cotopaxi, the volcano looming beyond the Ecuadoran capital of Quito, officials said Monday. The biggest risk is from an eruption melting the 5,900-meter (19,000-foot) mountain's snowcap and triggering massive melt-water floods and lahar mudflows that could sweep through nearby towns, Ecuador's minister of risk management Maria del Pilar Cornejo told a press conference. Considered one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world, Cotopaxi sent an ash plume high into the sky on Friday, before spewing several smaller clouds and leaving surrounding towns with a light dusting of volcanic ash. The last eruption was in 1877. Several small earthquakes were also recorded. In response, the government issued a state of emergency and ordered the evacuation of some 500 people in the immediate vicinity of the volcano. Ecuador's Geophysical Institute reported early Monday that there had been no new ashfall and little sulfur smell in the area during the previous 24 hours. But they labeled internal activity at the volcano "high" and surface activity "moderate." The state of the volcano, the institute said, was "actively erupting." "No pyroclastic eruption have taken place, so there are no lava flows," security minister Cesar Navas said. But he added that "there is evidence of fluid moving inside the volcano, as well as gas and magma." Source:
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| skibboy | 23 Aug 2015, 12:02 AM Post #5 |
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22 August 2015 Volcanic ash rains on central Ecuador, blanketing farms © AFP | A man sweeps away ash from the Cotopaxi volcano from the roof of a house in Machachi, Ecuador, on August 22, 2015 MACHACHI (ECUADOR) (AFP) - Ash from Ecuador's Cotopaxi volcano rained down on a dozen villages in the country's central Andean region Saturday, where agricultural output has been marred by a blanket of soot from explosions that began a week ago. The volcanic activity, which began August 14 after 138 years of silence, continued into Saturday with "steam emissions and a moderate load of ash" the country's Security Ministry said. From the nearby capital of Quito, home to some 2.3 million Ecuadorans, a gray column two kilometers (1.2 miles) high could be seen billowing above the crater. The volcano, which towers to 5,897 meters (19,347 feet) high, is considered one of the most threatening in the region -- both because of its size and because it is so close to well-populated towns. In the village of Machachi, one of the towns hardest-hit by the volcano, farmers are struggling against the eruptions' after-effects. "The cows have nothing left to eat because all the ash is on the grass, which is bad for them because it gives them fever, diarrhea and it stops their milk production," villager Nelson Pila told AFP. At least a dozen villages and part of southern Quito, which is located just 45 kilometers from Cotopaxi, have been affected by ash fall, the ministry said. The ash "burns crops, dries them, and they are lost," Maria de los Angeles Gualotuna, a 36-year-old farmer and livestock breeder, told AFP. The government, which declared a 60-day state of emergency, has sent livestock feed to the area and is preparing an evacuation plan in case the situation worsens. Around 500 people were evacuated from the volcano's surroundings last weekend. "There is a lot of dust, all day the steam comes out of the mountain and burns the throat and eyes," Oswaldo Diaz, a 60-year-old Machachi resident told AFP. Source:
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| skibboy | 8 Oct 2015, 11:41 PM Post #6 |
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08 October 2015 Ecuador volcano spews giant ash column © AFP | Picture taken from Quito of the Cotopaxi volcano spewing ash on October 8, 2015 QUITO (AFP) - Ecuador's Cotopaxi volcano, which began erupting in August after being dormant for 138 years, on Thursday coughed up a two-kilometer-high column of ash, officials said. The giant ash column was visible from Quito, 45 kilometers (30 miles) to the north of the volcano, considered one of the world's most dangerous because its snow cap is vulnerable in an eruption and because of its close proximity to densely populated areas. Ecuador's security coordination ministry said ash rose 2,000 meters above the volcano's crater, and warned some could fall on Quito's southern neighborhoods. Cotopaxi, one of eight active volcanoes in Ecuador, last erupted in 1877. The government declared a state of emergency in August after the volcano roared to life and has been conducting evacuation drills among the population. An estimated 325,000 people could be affected if the eruption triggers mudslides and avalanches, according to the authorities. Source:
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