MEXICO CITY (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd September, 2021) Guatemalan volcanologists reported on Thursday a powerful eruption of the Fuego volcano in the west of the country, with lava flows threatening several nearby municipalities.
"According to the National Institute for Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology Insivumeh ... at 7:35 am (01:35 GMT) on Thursday, September 23, pyroclastic flows in the Ceniza and Trinidad gorges were recorded descending the Fuego volcano," the national disaster relief committee Conred said in a statement.
The authorities warned that the highway southeast of the volcano was closed and an ash cloud six kilometers (3.7 miles) in radius was spreading. The lava flow, according to the estimates, has already moved 2-4 kilometers inland.
The municipalities of Ceniza, Taniluya and Trinidad have launched preventive evacuation of residents and opened shelters. The authorities advised wearing masks and covering drains and pipes from ash.
The Fuego volcano, located some 45 kilometers from the capital, is one of the most active volcanoes in Central America. The last time it erupted in February 2021. In June 2018, a powerful eruption of the Fuego volcano killed 190 people and affected 1.7 million of the country's 16.6 million population.
