* Ash plume rises high above country’s tallest volcano
* About 3,000 people to be evacuated; no damage reported
(Adds details)
MANAGUA, Sept 8 (Reuters) – Nicaragua’s tallest volcano
belched an ash plume up to 2 1/2 miles (4 km) into the
atmosphere on Saturday, prompting the evacuation of hundreds of
nearby residents who heard eruptions emanating from its crater.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage,
authorities said.
The 5,725-foot (1,745-meter) San Cristobal volcano, located
about 95 miles (150 km) north of the capital Managua in the
country’s volcano-dotted northwest, has been active in recent
years, and stirred in mid-2008, when it expelled gas and rumbled
with a series of small eruptions.
The government expects to evacuate about 3,000 people from
around San Cristobal, though numerous families already have done
so on their own, said Guillermo Gonzalez, who heads Sinapred, a
government emergency and disaster relief agency.
“We already have nearly the entire apparatus underway,”
Gonzalez said. “A response plan exists for volcano eruptions and
every community has clearly defined places for people to go to
once they are evacuated,” he said.
A gas and ash plume stretched between 2 and 2 1/2 miles (3.5
and 4 km) into the atmosphere, Gonzalez said.
The Nicaraguan Institute of Territorial Studies, which
monitors the country’s volcanoes, said in a preliminary report
that “more gas emissions and sporadic explosions” could be
expected from San Cristobal.
The volcano is one of the most active along Nicaragua’s
Pacific coast, according to the institute, and often averages
nearly 100 daily seismic movements.
Government spokeswoman Rosario Murillo earlier said
authorities were still assessing the strength of the volcanic
activity. As many as 20,000 people could ultimately be affected,
she said.
(Reporting by Ivan Castro; Writing by Simon Gardner and Herbert
Lash; Editing by Will Dunham)
