Icelandic authorities said Wednesday they are considering spraying water on lava that erupts in the event of a volcanic eruption to cool it and protect the town of Grindavik.
• Also read: Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland: could the 2010 scenario repeat itself?
• Also read: A town in Iceland was evacuated due to fears of a volcanic eruption
The fishing port of about 4,000 people on the Reykjanes Peninsula was evacuated on November 11 after hundreds of earthquakes caused by the movement of magma beneath the Earth’s crust – a precursor to a volcanic eruption.
Civil protection authorities and European experts will examine the possibility of “using a large amount of water to cool the lava and protect the city of Grindavik and important infrastructure,” said Vidir Reynisson, head of civil and emergency management in Iceland, during a press conference.
Iceland used this method as early as 1973, when a fissure opened 150 meters from the center of the island of Heimaey, surprising residents at dawn.
AFP
They were then able to slow down and control the movement of the lava.
“A technical assessment team will arrive in Iceland this evening or tomorrow morning and help us examine the possibilities,” Reynisson said.
Iceland has 33 volcanic systems, the most in Europe, and experiences eruptions on average every four to five years.
AFP
Three eruptions occurred near Fagradalsfjall on the Reykjanes Peninsula, in March 2021, August 2022 and July 2023.
Grindavik is close to the Svartsengi geothermal power plant, the main supplier of electricity and water for the peninsula’s 30,000 residents and an important freshwater reservoir.
The city is also close to the Blue Lagoon, a tourist spot known for its geothermal hot springs that has been closed as a precaution.
Iceland lies in the North Atlantic and straddles the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a gap in the ocean floor that separates the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates.