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China Daily Global / 2021-04 / 12 / Page006

Volcano covers Caribbean island in ash

China Daily Global | Updated: 2021-04-12 00:00

ST. JOHN'S, Antigua and Barbuda-Ash covered much of the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent on Saturday, and the stench of sulfur filled the air after a series of eruptions from a volcano that had been quiet for decades.

The thick dust was also on the move, traveling 175 kilometers to the east and starting to impact the neighboring island of Barbados.

"Barbadians have been urged to stay indoors as thick plumes of volcanic ash move through the atmosphere," the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency said.

The whitish powder caked roads, homes and buildings in Saint Vincent after the powerful blasts from the volcano called La Soufriere that began on Friday and continued into the night.

"Saturday morning on the island of over 110,000 residents looked like a winter wonderland, albeit blanketed by ash," the news portal news784.com said.

Visibility in some areas was extremely limited, while in the capital, Kingstown, on the south of the island-the volcano is in the north-the ash caused a thin haze of dust, the portal said.

"Vincentians are waking up to extremely heavy ash fall and strong sulfur smells which have now advanced to the capital," the local emergency management agency said.

The eruptions prompted thousands of people to flee for safety. About 16,000 people live in areas under evacuation orders.

Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said on Saturday that water has been cut off in most areas and the country's air space was closed because of the ash. About 3,000 people spent the night in shelters.

"It's a huge operation that is facing us," Gonsalves told NBC News.

Neighbors coming to aid

His government has been in contact with other countries that want to provide aid, he said. Guyana and Venezuela were sending ships with supplies, Gonsalves said.

The initial blast from La Soufriere, the highest peak in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, sent plumes of hot ash and smoke 6,000 meters into the air on Friday morning.

A second, smaller eruption took place in the afternoon, belching out a 4,000-meter-high ash cloud, the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre said.

The center's director, Erouscilla Joseph, said late on Saturday that there had been "additional explosions" throughout the day accompanied by more ash.

The 1,235-meter La Soufriere-the name is French for sulfur mine-had not erupted since 1979, and its largest blow-up happened in 1902, killing more than 1,000 people.

It had been rumbling for months before it finally blew.

Scientists warn that the explosions could continue for days or even weeks, and that the worst may be ahead.

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