ST. JOHN'S, Montserrat (AP) _ Montserrat's newly revived volcano
hurled glowing rocks high into the sky, triggered fiery avalanches and shot
a thundering ash cloud as high as 30,000 feet, scientists
said today.
The explosion Monday night sent volcanic boulders crashing over the spot where
Britain's Prince Andrew stood on the Belham Valley Bridge during a visit to
the British Caribbean island last week.
It was the largest since the Soufriere Hills volcano began belching out new
rock in November after a six-month silence that had scientists predicting an
end to four years of eruptions. The explosion sent a new coat of ash over parts
of the island's northern ``safe zone,'' where residents have been living since
the volcano began erupting in 1995. Since then, 7,000 of the 11,000 residents
have left for Britain and other Caribbean islands.
In 1997, a massive explosion killed 19 people who had ventured into the danger
zone. ``There were loud noises and thunder, glowing rocks flying in the air,''
Chelston Lee, a spokesman for the Montserrat Volcano Observatory, said today.
Scientists said the explosion confirmed their prediction that the new buildup
of rock would spawn a new series of explosions. They said heavy rains triggered
the collapse of the new lava dome, with hours of avalanches shooting down the
eastern flanks of the volcano Monday afternoon. Later that night an explosion
shot glowing rocks hundreds of feet into the air.
An ash cloud rose to 30,000 feet, creating lightning and thunder and forcing
air traffic controllers to divert airplanes around the island, Lee said. Mudslides
rushed over the Belham Valley bridge.
Last year, scientists said the volcano had stopped erupting for the first time
since roaring to life in July 1995. Residents were allowed to return to part
of the evacuated area, although the devastated capital of Plymouth remains off-limits.
But after two small explosions in early November, helicopter flights showed
the volcano was spewing out lava again at the rate of four to seven cubic yards
every second.
Mitch Battros
Producer - Earth Changes TV
http://www.earthchangesTV.com