The the Reykjanes Peninsula.and the Blue Lagoon, Norðurljósavegur, in a lava field near Grindavík, as seen from the air.
Icelandic authorities once again declared a state of emergency after a major volcanic eruption sent lava flowing towards the coastal town of Grindavík and forced the evacuation of the Blue Lagoon spa, public broadcaster RÚV reported.
The center of the eruption occurred between Stóra-Skógfell and Hagafell, north of Grindavik, which is 26 miles (42 km) due southwest of Reykjavik, on the Reykjanes Peninsula.
The renowned geothermal spa, a popular tourist destination located on the Blue Lagoon, Norðurljósavegur, in a lava field near Grindavík and in front of Mount Þorbjörn, has seen a series of closures in recent months amidst a wave of seismic activity that continues to affect the country.
Located on a rift between tectonic plates, Iceland is one of the most active volcanic areas on the planet. Reykjanesskagi, or the Southern Peninsula, is dominated by a rift valley, with lava fields and cones.
The Veðurstofa Íslands, the nation’s meteorological bureau, said that the volcano began to erupt just before 8:30 p.m. local time with little warning.
The eruption is the the fourth in three months’ time, although meteorologists had feared another eruption for the past several weeks although they could not predict when it would occur.
The Veðurstofa Íslands said the first warning to the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management was at 7:43 p.m. on Saturday, and the onset of the eruption was confirmed via remote web cameras just 40 minutes later.
In a statement, the Blue Lagoon said it would remain closed until at least Tuesday.
“Due to a volcanic eruption that commenced at Sundhnúkagígar on March 16, we have evacuated and temporarily closed all our operational units. The current eruption site is at a safe distance from Blue Lagoon,” the spa said on its website, adding that it would “remain closed through Tuesday, March 19.”
The volcano has erupted multiple times since 2021 and four eruptions have been reported in the last four months, the first having taken place on December 28, the second on January 14, and the third on February 8.
As a result of the eruptions, the U.S. government issued a Volcano Alert on Sunday.
“U.S. citizens are advised to monitor local news and government websites for detailed information and to follow Iceland Civil Protection instructions,” it said.
“If an eruption occurs, follow the instructions of Icelandic authorities,” the alert read. “Volcanic hazards may include lava, toxic gases, and heavy smoke from fires ignited by lava.”
Flights into and out of Keflavíkurflugvöllur, the island’s main international airport, were reported to be operating normally, and the eruption did not appear to have a significant impact on aviation traffic.
News of each occurrence gives this publication the opportunity to use letters from the Old English and Old Norse alphabet that continue to exist in Modern Icelandic including the þorn (uppercase Þ; lowercased þ) and the eð (uppercase Ð; lowercase ð). In Old English, the letter þ and the letter ð were used interchangeable to represent the dental fricative phoneme now represented by “th.”
(Photo: Accura Media Group)
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