Ash-covered St. Vincent braces for more volcanic eruptions

Chellise Rogers, who lives in the village of Biabou, which is in an area of St. Vincent that’s 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.

“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 Center, said during a news conference.

About 16,000 people have had to flee their ash-covered communities with as many belongings as they could stuff into suitcases and backpacks. However, there have been no reports of anyone being killed or injured by the initial blast or those that followed. Before it blew, the government ordered people to evacuate the most high-risk area around the 1,220-metre volcano after scientists warned that magma was moving close to the surface.

‘It’s difficult to breathe’

Ralph Gonsalves, the prime minister of the 32 islands that make up the country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, said on local station NBC Radio that people should remain calm, be patient and keep trying to protect themselves from the coronavirus. He said officials were trying to figure out the best way to collect and dispose of the ash, which covered an airport runway near the capital of Kingstown, about 32 kilometres south, and fell as far away as Barbados, about 190 kilometres to the east.

“It’s difficult to breathe,” the prime minister said, adding that although the volcano was venting less, a big plume of ash remained. “What goes up, must come down.”

Although Gonsalves said it could take up to four months for life to return to normal, he’s confident it will.

“Agriculture will be badly affected, and we may have some loss of animals, and we will have to do repairs to houses. But if we have life and we have strength — we will build it back better, stronger, together,” he said.

People who didn’t heed the initial evacuation order hurried to do so Saturday. At least a few ash-covered evacuees escaped in small boats and headed to other parts of the main island, which makes up 90 per cent of the country’s total land.

Thousands take refuge in shelters

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, with a group of more than 130 already taken to St. Lucia. Those staying at the shelters were tested for COVID-19, with anyone testing positive being taken to an isolation centre.

Nearby nations, including Antigua and Grenada, also offered to take in evacuees.

On Saturday, some people swept outside their homes and taped their doors and windows shut in the hopes of keeping out the ash.

The ash has forced the cancellation of several flights, and poor visibility limited evacuations in some areas. Officials warned that St. Lucia to the north and Grenada to the south could get light ash fall, though most of it was expected to head northeast into the Atlantic Ocean.

Although the ash can seem scary, it won’t harm healthy people in the short term, said Claire Horwell, a professor at Durham University in the U.K. who will be analyzing the ash emitted by La Soufrière. She recommended that people wear face masks, long sleeves and pants to avoid irritation.

However, she warned that the ash and gases, particularly sulfur dioxide, could affect asthmatics and others with chronic health conditions.