El Hierro, the smallest of the heavily visited Canary Islands, is evacuating a targeted group of residents and tourists this week. This comes in response to the spike in intensity of the tremors that the Spanish National Geographic Institute began reporting in July and the fear that these events could lead to a volcanic eruption. El Hierro’s last reported eruption lasted a month back in 1793.

This voluntary evacuation could actually lead to an influx of visitors by those practicing volcano tourism as they may choose to go to the island to witness and document the event. In some cases this practice can be safe, as explained by Eumenio Ancochea, volcanologist at Madrid’s Complutense University, “After an eruption the lava advances at a few metres per hour and you can easily take photographs as it descends.”   In the El Hierro case, it may not be safe to visit, as potential landslides resulting from an eruption could be devastating.  It is this threat of landslides that has motivated the evacuation.

El Hierro is just the latest of many volcanoes gaining celebrity in the news, but this is not necessarily an indication that volcanic activity is increasing worldwide.  As we surmised in July, experts suggest that the impression of increased volcanic activity should be attributed to increased reporting and better communication all around the world.

Photo by Mataparda.

Reports from Sulawesi in Indonesia indicate that once again thousands are fleeing smoke, ash and lava from a spectacular eruption. Whether Indonesia, Chile, Iceland or Eritrea—volcanic activity is grabbing headlines and has made us wonder if world travelers are increasingly likely to encounter active volcanoes. We asked Robert Peckyno, webmaster for Volcano World at Oregon State University, what scientists think. He shared with us a Smithsonian analysis that convincingly concludes that the number of confirmed erupting volcanoes has leveled off between 50 and 70 per year over the past four decades. Researchers say that the impression of increased activity should be attributed to increased reporting and better communication all around the world.

Not content with this finding, some volcanologists and climatologists have started to study whether global climate change might accelerate volcanic activity. A recently published paper says “observations suggest that the ongoing rise in global average temperatures may already be eliciting a hazardous response from the geosphere.” Perhaps travel in the decades ahead will feature trips to enjoy volcanic fireworks and require aircraft to routinely skirt clouds of volcanic ash.

Photo by zadoc.

Ten days of intermittent erupting by Chile’s Puyehue volcano has created an ash cloud stretching 6,000 miles through the atmosphere to Australia and New Zealand. The latest news reports carry accounts of cancelled flights throughout the southern hemisphere. On the ground, volcanic ash closed roads in southern Patagonia (Argentina).  Air traffic is reportedly often able to skirt the ash particles by flying at lower altitudes, but airports in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Montevideo, Uruguay halted flights today.

Photo by sacabezas.

Central Java’s Mount Merapi continues to erupt, and to the casual observer, it may seem to be in a remote part of the world. But Merapi has been identified by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI) as one of the few volcanoes around the world that poses a serious risk to human populations.  The IAVEI also has named 15 other volcanoes as part of the group of known as the Decade Volcanoes.  These volcanoes, recognized for in-depth study because of their history of destructive eruptions and proximity to populated areas, are part of a project called the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction 1990-2000. The purpose of the project is to increase awareness of the dangers these volcanoes present.

Some of the names are familiar, but all of the lava and ash producers below are active and dangerous.

 
Findings from the Decade Volcano project have helped predict volcanic events and lessen the impact of disasters. Keep this list handy if want to avoid — or witness from a safe distance — a live volcano.

The most volatile volcano in Indonesia has been experiencing increased activity in the past 24 hours.  On Monday, the Indonesian government raised the alert for Mount Merapi to the highest level and reported that the magma has risen to about 1km below the surface. About 500 volcanic earthquakes were recorded on the mountain over the weekend.  Officials have reported that there is pressure building behind a massive lava dome near the tip of the crater, and if the pressure is not released slowly, the area could experience a huge eruption.  You can learn more and keep abreast of the scientific monitoring by checking the Wikipedia article. The volcano is located on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta, and residents within a six mile radius have been urged to evacuate.

Mount Merapi, which translates to Mountain of Fire, has erupted regularly since 1548.  Generally there have been smaller eruptions every two or three years, with larger ones occurring every 10 to 15 years.  Mount Merapi is one of the 16 Decade Volcanoes, which are chosen by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI) for particular study because of their history of large, destructive eruptions and proximity to populated areas.

According to Altegrity International more than 300 people were evacuated from villages near the volcano.  But as the world was reminded by the recent volcanic eruption in Iceland, volcanic ash can cause medical problems and disrupt travel plans hundreds of miles away from the site of the activity.

Despite the World Health Organization’s warning last Friday that Icelanders and Europeans may have to stay inside to avoid respiratory problems once the Icelandic volcanic ash begins to settle, most experts agree that the effects should be minimal.  “There is a massive diluting effect in the atmosphere as it gets dispersed by wind which means the amount reaching land is very small,” said Ken Donaldson, professor of respiratory toxicology at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.  He added that little impact has been seen in people’s health from prior volcanic eruptions, except for in those with lung problems in the immediate vicinity of the volcano.

Volcanic ash is composed of fine particles of fragmented volcanic rock.  Only very small particles measuring less than 10 microns in size are able to reach the lower respiratory tract in humans and cause adverse effects such as wheezing and coughing.  Analysis of the ash that has been released thus far suggests that less than 25% of the particles are small enough to cause problems.

So long as the volcanic ash remains in the upper atmosphere, respiratory toxicologists maintain, there will be no increase in people’s exposure and little to no added health risk.  If the ash drops to ground level due to vertical movement of air masses, those with chronic respiratory problems such as emphysema and asthma could experience a slight increase in respiratory symptoms.  Rainfall could mitigate the problem, however, by removing the ash particles altogether from the atmosphere.

For now, the World Health Organization is monitoring the situation, and will issue more substantial warnings if the eruption continues for many more weeks and the volcanic ash, now drifting above 20,000 feet, begins to settle over Iceland and Northern Europe.

Dateline: Vienna
Situation: Stranded by Airport Closures
Medical Report: You can breathe the air but check out these developing issues.

There’s no ash in the air here in Austria, but besides all the general travel headaches you are seeing on the news, I’ve uncovered some disconcerting trends in working with our members traveling around the world:

• Travelers are running out of the prescription medicines: Type 1 diabetes patient in Singapore needs insulin; traveler in London needs high blood pressure medicine; a couple in Milan needs to replenish medicines for cholesterol levels, thyroid condition and birth control; a liver transplant patient in London needs medication to control organ rejection.  All these cases are being sorted out by HTH Worldwide staff via visits to doctors to get new prescriptions.
• Doctor displacement causing problems: April is prime time for medical conferences around the world as well as high vacation season for physicians in tourist destinations where they are busy in the height of summer.  A lot of doctors we know were away last week and cannot get back to their practices.  We have heard from a doctor from the UK who is stranded in Budapest as well as a doctor from Rome who is stuck in Spain.  Some London hospitals are doing a department by department survey to see how many specialists are Missing In Action, so they can restructure staffing. It’s not an overwhelming problem by any means, but a lot of senior physicians were away when volcano erupted.

We will keep tracking developments while Ejafjallajokull continues to spew.

Photo info: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gsfc/ / CC BY 2.0