Residents of ash-covered Caribbean island St Vincent brace for more volcanic eruptions
- ‘The first bang is not necessarily the biggest bang this volcano will give,’ said Richard Robertson, a geologist with the University of the West Indies’ Seismic Research Centre
- About 3,200 people took refuge at 78 government-run shelters, and four empty cruise ships stood ready to take other evacuees to nearby islands
People who ignored an initial warning to evacuate the area closest to a volcano on the eastern Caribbean island of St Vincent raced to get clear on Saturday, a day after it erupted with an explosion that shook the ground, spewed ash skyward and blanketed the island in a layer of fine volcanic rock.
The eruption Friday of La Soufrière – its first large one since 1979 – transformed the island’s lush towns and villages into gloomy, grey versions of themselves.
A strong sulphur smell was unavoidable on Saturday and ash covered everything, creeping into homes, cars and noses, and obscuring the sunshine that makes the island so popular with tourists.
Chellise Rogers, who lives in the village of Biabou, which is in an area of St Vincent that is considered safe, said she could hear continuous rumbling.
“It’s exhilarating and scary at the same time,” she said. “(It’s the) first time I am witnessing a volcano eruption.”
Scientists warn that the explosions could continue for days or even weeks, and that the worst could be yet to come.
If we have life and we have strength – we will build it back better, stronger, together.
“The first bang is not necessarily the biggest bang this volcano will give,” Richard Robertson, a geologist with the University of the West Indies’ Seismic Research Centre, said during a news conference.