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 By Mari�tte Le Roux Paris (AFP) June 4, 2018
The eruption of the Fuego volcano in Guatemala was likely a "pyroclastic surge" similar to the one that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii, says volcanologist David Rothery of The Open University in England. The word pyroclastic is derived from the ancient Greek for "fire" and "fragments". Rothery analysed for AFP the latest eruption which has killed at least 25 people: Q: What type of an eruption was this? A: "The cause of most deaths at the current eruption of Fuego (Guatemala) is being widely reported as a 'river of lava'. This is probably an inexpert description or a mistranslation. Fuego does not characteristically produce long fluid lava flows like those currently erupting from Kilauea (Hawaii). They are unlikely to reach inhabited areas, and are not the main hazard at this volcano. "A lava flow (molten rock) rarely travels fast enough to engulf people... "The videos and still images that I've seen suggest instead one or more pyroclastic flows. This is when a violently erupted mass of rock fragments and hot gas finds itself too dense to rise as an ash column, and instead cascades down the volcano's slopes. "Pyroclastic flows (or surges) can move at over 100 kilometres (62 miles) per hour, and may be hot enough to glow like molten lava. They can travel further, as well as much faster, than lava flows. This is the phenomenon that claimed many lives during the famous AD 79 eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii." Q: Why now? A: "No particular reason. There is no link to any recent earthquakes or to the eruption in Hawaii. It takes a LONG time for magma to accumulate at depth and rise toward the surface before it can erupt. The volcano 'plumbing' system below Fuego feels no influence whatsoever from events in Hawaii." Q: Why was this eruption not predicted? A: "I don't know. Fuego has been erupting since 2002, and was continuously active in 2017. On 17 May a 25-metre (82-foot) wide lahar (volcanic mudflow) came down the mountain, and there were explosions and ash plumes during 19-21 May. "Given the activity... it might have been wise to declare an evacuation zone around the volcano." Q: Is it over? A: "The Guatemalan volcano monitoring authority (Insivumeh) is now reporting the eruption as over, although lahars remain a hazard when rain falls on newly-deposited ash. .. When rain falls on new ash it can turn into a dense slurry (like wet concrete) and devastate alleys (bridges can be destroyed.
Guatemalans recall terror of eruption Barefoot, with his wife and two-month-old daughter sleeping on a blanket by his side, the 22-year-old recalled the terror that gripped his family as a tide of boiling mud and ash suddenly swept into their hillside home. "It came in through the doors, through the windows. We were hot. We couldn't breathe. Everything was boiling," he said. "We managed to escape by breaking down walls, fences, then climbing walls, and we got to where there were firefighters and soldiers," said Lopez. His other daughter, aged 4, had to be treated in hospital for leg burns. The floor of the community hall in Escuintla, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the Guatemalan capital, is temporary home to 272 people, including many children, who managed to outrun a surge of fiery rock and scalding mud when Fuego exploded on Sunday. Everyone here comes from the village of El Rodeo, which was devastated by the pyroclastic flow that cascaded down the volcano's southern flank. Guatemala's disaster response agency says at least 25 people were killed and some 3,000 inhabitants had to be evacuated. An unknown number of people are still missing. "I was scared. This has never happened before," said Cleotilde Reyes, a woman in her sixties who was born in the area and is used to Fuego's frequent activity. She said she managed to escape at the last minute with her daughter and two grandchildren in a neighbor's van. -Giant ash column- "I do not dare to go home," said 36-year-old Erick Ortiz, who said he had sensed the danger and left his home with his wife and two young children as the towering column of smoke and ash plunged the area into darkness. "I was scared seeing the darkness increase and we decided to leave before we could be trapped," he said. Authorities said the thick black column reached an altitude of 2,200 meters (7,200 feet) and covered tens of square kilometers in ash, forcing the country's international airport to shut down. The eruption had subsided Monday but a massive search operation, involving Civil Protection units, police and soldiers, was continuing. Locals were still fearful that the volcano could erupt anew. On the floor of the community center, Efrain Gonzalez, 52, says he cannot rest. His wife and one-year-old daughter managed to flee with him, but his 10-year old son and his other daughter, just four years old, are missing. "This time we were saved. In another (eruption) no," he said.
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