Volcanoes in iceland Flashcards
Date
22 January 1973
what happened at 10pm
Began to experience a series of weak earthquakes
at 2am what happened
report that volcanic eruption started near Kirkjubaer
how big was the crack
1600 meters
What is the volcano now called
Eldfell
How did they warn people
Fire alarm to wake up people
Town cities response
evacuate the whole population of the island
When did the first fishing boat leave
2.30am
how many people evacuated by air
300
How many people were evacuated altogether
5000
How thick was the lava and ash that covered buildings on the eastern side of the town and what was the result
4 m many houses collapsed under wieght
what was the danger and when
6 feb, harbour entrance being blocked
What did the fire brigade do
pumped water to cool lava
What did they do to try stop lava from reaching houses
Bulldozers used to build dam to stop lava
What was the problem with the lava
It was travelling at 40 m per hr and went right over dam
what was the condition by 25 March
It had buried or burnt 111 houses
However what happened on 26 March
The lava cooled and did not reach harbour so cooling had worked
When was eruption over
3 July
Composition of material released
10% ash and pumice the rest was lava
How did the Eldfell volcano change
It went from nothing to 225 m above sea level
How much did the land area increase by
2.5 km (square)
What was the new land used for
Extra shelter from rough seas
Effects of houses
1/3 of housed destroyed and 1/3 damaged
What was don by 1975
Most of ash cleared and moved to new lava field,. where it was used to make roads enlarge airstrip and make foundations for new houses,.
how many people came back after eruption
3500 out of 5300
What is the new population
about 5000
what hung over the town
a large dark cloud
What was the first warning of the eruption
the storms during the day that kept boats in
Causes
Constructive plate margin, North American plate moving away from Eurasian plate