A volcanic eruption began in Iceland, threatening the city of Hryndavik

In the southwest of Iceland, a powerful volcanic eruption began on Sunday. Residents of Hryndavik and nearby villages were evacuated on Saturday. According to the meteorological services, the lava has already reached a distance of 450 meters to the northern border of the city.

Previously, protective dams of earth and stones were built around Hryndavik, which were supposed to stop lava flows. However, as the local authorities said, due to underground shocks, cracks appeared in them.

This is the second time in recent months that Hryndavik and its surroundings are exposed to volcanic danger. The state of emergency in the region was declared in November last year. Then in Hryndavika, after a series of underground shocks, multi-kilometer cracks formed in the ground. All four thousand residents of the city were evacuated. The “Blue Lagoon” spa resort – one of the country’s tourist attractions – was also closed and evacuated.

On December 18, the Reykjanes volcano near Hryndavik began to erupt. Magma spewed out along the crest of a hilly chain. The eruption was so strong that it was visible even from the capital of Iceland, Reykjavík, located 40 kilometers from Hryndavík. It lasted for several days. After that, about 100 residents of Hryndavik returned to their homes. On Saturday, due to increased volcanic activity, they were evacuated again.

• There are 33 active volcanoes in Iceland – more than in any other European country. The eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in 2010 was the largest in recent times. Then the volcano threw out huge clouds of ash, which paralyzed flights over most of Europe for several days and caused multibillion-dollar losses.