San Miguel volcano news & activity updates

San Miguel volcano (El Salvador): new eruption

The new eruption that occurred at the volcano Sunday (29 Dec) morning at 10:50 am local time has so far been an isolated single explosion of vulcanian type (accumulated pressure ejecting the plug in the conduit). Current seismic activity is low, but more activity could follow.
The explosion produced an ash plume of considerable (3-8 km) height, reaching estimated altitudes of 5-10 km. Heavy ash fall followed the eruption in nearby areas downwind, such as in the towns of Chinameca and San Jorge to the west. Civil Protection immediately began to evacuate families residing in a radius of 3 km around the volcano. So far, more than 5000 persons have been ordered to evacuate.
The following video from MARN's webcam shows the onset of the powerful explosion, accompanied by a (fortunately only) small pyroclastic flow (starting a 8sec):

The second largest city of the country, San Miguel de la Frontera (approx. 250,000 inhabitants) is located only 7 km NE of the volcano and could be at risk if the eruption continues and starts to produce pyroclastic flows (see hazard map of MARN).
Satellite images showed the plume shortly after the explosion stretching over approx. 150 km length.
Seismic data showed a steep increase in earthquake activity starting at 06:30 local time. After the explosion, seismic activity dropped again, suggesting that

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• Reportan actividad en volcán Chaparrastique de San Miguel (La Prensa Grafica)
• New Explosive Eruption From El Salvador’s San Miguel (Eruptions Blog)

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