Scientists Report no Further Tremors at La Soufriere Volcano Over Past 24 Hours

KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent – Seismic activity at the La Soufriere volcano remains low and in the last 24 hours only a few long-period, hybrid and volcano-tectonic earthquakes have been recorded and there was no further tremor.

La Soufriere volcano on Friday (CMC Photo)The Seismic Research Centre (SC) of the University of the West Indies (UWI), which is monitoring the volcano that erupted explosively on April 9, said in its latest bulleting that seismic activity has remained low since the tremor associated with the explosion and ash venting on April.22.

It said that the seismic stations recorded signals from lahars for a 40-minute period starting at about 5.00 pm (local time) on Friday and that these lahars were much smaller than those on April 28 and 29.

“Lahars are fast moving, dense mixture of rocks, ash and vegetation and water originating from a volcano. The volcano continues to be in a state of unrest and the alert level is still Red. Explosions with accompanying ashfall, of similar or larger magnitude to those that have already occurred in this eruption, can take place with little or no warning,” the SRC warned.

Meanwhile, the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) is advising the public to be aware of flooding and landslides in several areas on mainland St. Vincent as a result of heavy rainfall in recent days.

It said that the Red Zone can be impacted by mudflows as ash deposits are thickest in these areas and the absence of trees means that all of the material will find its way down the valleys.

“The public is asked to exercise caution especially persons living near rivers and streams and in areas prone to landslides as flood waters are dangerous and can result in loss of lives and property.

To be safe: avoid site seeing and stay off the roads as far as possible,” NEMO added.