The imposing Rincón de la Vieja volcano maintains its constant eruptions. This Tuesday at 2:59 a.m. recorded one more that passed 3,000 meters high.“The infrasound signal indicates that it was not as energetic, however, the plume rose to a height of 3,000 m above the crater. There are no reports of lahars,” said the Volcanological and Seismological Observatory (Ovsicori).
Strict surveillance in the area
Experts keep strict surveillance in the area, because the massif is in a very active phase.Only in May, the official data from Ovsicori indicates that Rincón de la Vieja made 58 eruptions. Of these, seven were moderate.Hence, the alert level rose from warning to prevention. However, they highlight that the eruptions are in the normal range, since 2011.
“Since November, an increase in many parameters has been observed, such as the faster deformation of the volcanic edifice, but it is an activity similar to what has been recorded,” said Javier Pacheco, an Ovsicori expert.
“The magmatic content of the elements ejected by the volcano was measured and it was determined that only 5% is due to the interaction of the magma with the hydrothermal system,” he emphasized.
As an example, he indicated that in May 2017, the largest eruption and the highest magmatic content was recorded with 40%.“Likewise, the eruptions are caused by magmatic gases that rise to the surface and combine with the hydrothermal system. It is the same behavior of the last 6 years”, affirmed Pacheco.
No relation to the other volcanoes
The experts also pointed out that in case of significant changes, they have the instruments to measure and inform the population of major eruptions.In addition, they ruled out that a greater activity of this volcano influences other volcanoes in Costa Rica to become active as well.Currently, experts keep an eye on the Poás and Turrialba volcanoes.
Prevention
The National Emergency Commission (CNE) is working on a series of strategies to safeguard the surrounding population and minimize risks.”After an eruption, lahars transport mud, hot logs, and sediments from the crater lake to the rivers, which represent a threat to people who could be near the riverbeds,” warned Alejandro Picado, president of the CNE.
Given this, residents and tourists are called to maintain prevention and not approach the rivers that are in the north of the volcano and towards Upala after the eruptions.The rivers that are on alert are: Río Azul, Azufrada, QuebradaSanjonuta and Río Pénjamo.
Avoid risks
They also make a vehement call to the population to avoid illegal ascents to the crater sector, which is where the greatest risk lies.”After the eruptions we see that the affectation is less than 2 kilometers around the park, for that reason it has not been closed to tourism,” clarified Lidier Esquivel from the CNE.”There is no affectation for humans and animals such as ash fall,” he insisted.
For this reason, the Rincón de la Vieja National Park maintains visitation in areas with a distance of up to 5 kilometers from the massif.
