Reports of ‘unholy sounds’ have come from Iceland, where the country is bracing for a potentially destructive volcano eruption.
A long series of 500 earthquakes occurred in the southwestern Reykjanes Peninsula yesterday – a telltale sign of impending volcanic chaos, with Fagradalsfjall expected to erupt soon.
With footage of large cracks appearing through towns and villages, the government declared a state of emergency on Friday – 4,000 people have been ordered to leave the town of Grindivik.
Smoke has been seen drifting up and out of this major chasm, as magma rises gradually to the surface. It has all left the scrambling inhabitants feeling ‘seasick’, with some describing hearing ‘unholy sounds’ beneath their homes.
Authorities are working hard to protect key infrastructure, with plans to build defence walls to shield a key geothermal power plant from lava flows.
The Svartsengi geothermal power plant is just behind the world-famous Blue Lagoon – which has been closed to visitors.
Iceland’s Justice Minister Gudrun Hafsteinsdottir told broadcasters a dike has been designed, with materials on the way – it is just awaiting government approval.
An eruption has been predicted to burst anywhere along a newly discovered 14km ‘corridor’ of magma underneath the town – although a spokesperson for the power plant said any disruption would not impact power supply to the capital city of Reykjavik.
Nevertheless, the potential damage that the eruption could bring is unknown, with Matthew James Roberts of the Icelandic Met Office talking of “tremendous uncertainty”.
Adding to the drama is the increasing difficulty for people to get into the area of Grinvadik due to the chasms getting wider.
The head of the Department for Public Safety explained the area was “sinking” and “new cracks are constantly forming”, meaning anyone hoping to return to their homes “will need to be accompanied by emergency personnel”.
One local, Hans Vera, described the fear among Icelandic people at the moment, saying: “not knowing whether we will ever be able to return makes us feel so sad and lost”, adding it was “difficult to hold back your tears. Survival mode.”
With locals “essentially just waiting” according to a local journalist, Roberts of the Met Office explained that the incoming likely eruption would not produce a looming ash cloud like the famous 2010 one which grounded tens of thousands of European flights – but would instead be a “lava-producing” volcano which could damage the town and might even “persist for weeks”.
