National Post (National Edition)
FIVE THINGS ABOUT VOLCANIC ICELAND
1 EYJAFJALLAJOKULL’S IMPACT
Few outside Iceland had heard of Eyjafjallajokull when the volcano erupted in 2010 after two centuries of silence, spewing an ash cloud that closed Europe’s airspace and grounded millions of travellers. But tourism authorities realized there’s no such thing as bad publicity. News footage of lavaspewing craters helped make the country look cool and beautiful, with a hint of danger. Some 1.8 million people are expected to visit this year, up from half a million in 2010.
2 A HINT OF DANGER
Iceland is home to 32 active volcanic sites, and its history is punctuated with eruptions. The 1783 eruption of Laki spewed a toxic cloud over Europe, killing tens of thousands of people and sparking famine when crops failed. Some historians cite it as a contributing factor to the French Revolution.
3 TIME FOR AN ERUPTION?
“We are kind of waiting for it,” said Thordis Olafsdottir, who runs the tourist office in Vik, at the base of Katla, which recently began rumbling after decades of quiet. “It has been almost 100 years since it erupted,” she said. “It is ready.” Katla is one of Iceland’s largest and most feared volcanoes. Its last eruption, in 1918, lasted almost a month, unleashed flood waters the size of the Amazon and extended Iceland’s coast by five kilometres.
4 NOT EVERYONE LIKES IT
“We were even getting phone calls from the public, and emails: ‘You have to do something about this volcano. Can you make it stop?’ ” said police Detective Chief Inspector Rognvaldur Olafsson.
5 ‘YOU HAVE TO RESPECT NATURE’
“You have to respect nature when you come to Iceland, and you have to be aware of where you are and what can happen. If you were going to be worried about anything that might happen you’d probably be best staying at home,” Olafsson said.