Huge cracks appear on roads in Icelandic town at risk of volcanic eruption
Authorities fear the Iceland volcano could erupt with just 30 minutes notice as the country’s Meteorological Office (IMO) warned magma may have reached very high up in the Earth’s crust.
Kristín Jónsdóttir, head of department at the Icelandic Meteorological Office, said people will “just have to wait in suspense for the next few days” to see how events play out.
She said the decreasing earthquake activity over the last 24 hours could be a sign that magma has reached very close to the earth’s surface, adding that the scenario is not unlike what was seen prior to a previous eruption in 2021.
Authorities fear they could get as little as “30 minutes notice” before the anticipated volcanic eruption. “All the big signs are already there, so we are looking for the small signs, the signs that say that even though we are monitoring very closely,” Vídir Reynisson, chief of civil protection added.
The Met Office said magmatic gas has been detected at a borehole in Svartsengi, signalling an imminent eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano over the coming days, with the town of Grindavik most at risk.
