Heimaey Island

Question 1

date of heimaey

Answer 1

23/11/73

Question 2

Brief background of what happened

Answer 2

a fissure opened on the east side of the island which was 1 km from the town centre, the fissure quickly expanded to 300m to a total length of 2km

Question 3

What type of margin did this occur at

Answer 3

constructive

Question 4

How high where the lava spikes along the fissure

Answer 4

50m-150m

Question 5

Where was activity concentrated

Answer 5

on one vent 0.8km from the north of the town

Question 6

How long did the eruption last

Answer 6

26 days

Question 7

How did the lava travel

Answer 7

the lava travelled slowly towards the town and the harbour in slow moving lava deltas

Question 8

How many residents had to be evacuated and as a result were temporarily displaced

Answer 8

5,300

Question 9

How many were killed

Answer 9

0

Question 10

How many buildings destroyed

Answer 10

300

Question 11

How much of the town was destroyed

Answer 11

1/3

Question 12

What was the major concern in terms of economic impact

Answer 12

The lava flow was heading towards the fishing port which the town heavily relied on for income and employment, however as a result of the lava flow which was diverted there ended up being an improvement as the solidified lava provided protection against wind and waves

Question 13

How much total damage was there

Answer 13

$3.6 billion which is relatively low

Question 14

Who organised the evacuation of the 5,300 residents?

Answer 14

Civil Defence Organisation

Question 15

Was there any warning?

Answer 15

no, the volcano had been dormant for over 500 years

Question 16

Why was the evacuation necessary?

Answer 16

the lava flow was heading directly towards the town

Question 17

How was the evacuation executed

Answer 17

The fishing fleet which was home due to a severe storm evacuated then majority within 0.5 hours of the first eruption, those unable to go by boat were evacuated by air

Question 18

What was done successfully to try and divert the law

Answer 18

sea water was pumped onto the lava to solidify it and prevent it from reaching the harbour, specialist equipment was brought in from the US with 19 miles of pipes and 43 pumps

Question 19

In terms of insurance what happened

Answer 19

Most of the residents had insurance of their homes therefore the rebuild was able to start as soon as the island was deemed safe, however some fisheries did not have adequate insurance, so could not be rebuilt immediately