Chilean authorities increased this Saturday the alert level and access restrictions to the Láscar volcano due to an increase in seismic activity and a possible eruption.
The volcano, which is located in a sparsely inhabited area near the border with Boliviarecorded “an increase in seismicity, mainly that associated with fluid dynamics within the volcanic system,” indicated a report from the National Geology and Mining Service (Sernageomin), which announced the change from yellow to orange alert.
“In this stage possible occurrence of eruptive pulses with columns that exceed five kilometers in height, projection of ballistic blocks and dispersion of ash in the surroundings of the volcano is expected”added the note, according to the AFP news agency.
In the last daily report of the organism it was detailed that The yellow alert for the San Pedro de Atacama commune will be maintained and the security perimeter will be extended to ten kilometers.
Meanwhile, Álvaro Amigo, national deputy director of Geology at Sernageomin, indicated that “according to what was reported in recent special reports The highest energy LP earthquake has been recorded since the instrumental record has been recorded with a Reduced Displacement (DR) equal to 717 square centimeters for this volcano”.
The National Director of the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service in Chile, Mauricio Tapia, indicated that “in attention to the technical background provided by Sernageomin, that indicate the increase in the activity of the Lascar volcano, the Yellow Alert will be extended for the commune of San Pedro de Atacama, which implies the reinforcement of the technical monitoring of the behavior of the volcano and the determination of measures for the protection of the population”.
This morning we met at the technical table, in videoconference with Antofagasta, in the context of the coordination that is being implemented since this morning, as a result of the Orange Alert in the Láscar volcano and the increase in the security perimeter in a radius of 10 km pic.twitter.com/OGbQ1NuLj9
— SENAPRED (@Senapred) January 28, 2023
The orange alert contemplates the reinforcement of the technical monitoring of the behavior of the volcano and measures for the protection of the surrounding towns such as San Pedro de Atacama, a town very visited by local and foreign tourists located about 70 kilometers from Láscar.
“In this context and in consideration of the level of risk, the security perimeter around the crater will be extended from five to ten kilometers, restricting access to that area,” reported Sernageomin.
The Lascar, 5,592 meters high, it is located in the Antofagasta region, about 1,600 kilometers north of Santiagoand its last eruption was recorded in 1993.
In Chile it is also under constant surveillance and the Villarrica volcano, in the south of the country, is on yellow alert.
