Three tourists were injured while crossing the rough terrain to view the Fagradalsfjall volcano in southwest Iceland.
The injuries were not serious, but they underscored the risks facing tourists who hike to the Fagradalsfjall volcano in southwest Iceland, officials said.
Three tourists were injured in Iceland Wednesday night as they walked across rough terrain to a volcanic eruption that caused awe-struck crowd to its sputtering fountains of red-hot lava, a spokeswoman for Iceland's civil protection agency said. The injuries, including a broken ankle, were not serious, but they underscored the risks that tourists can face attempting to hike to the lava flowing from the Fagradalsfjall volcano in southwest Iceland, the spokeswoman, Hjordis Gudmundsdottir, said in an interview on Thursday. Even though we know it is spectacular and there is nothing like it, we have to be careful, and we have to be prepared before we go, said Ms. Gudmundsdottir.
She said the hike to and from the area takes about five hours and may involve crossing lava that is still fragile and hot beneath the surface, since the volcano erupted last year. There are officials who have warned of the dangers of gas pollution near the eruption site.
Ms. Gudmundsdottir said that we are trying to tell people that it is not just a walk in the park. People have to be careful and in good clothes and good shoes. We are trying to tell that to both Icelanders and our foreign friends. The tourist with a broken ankle was taken by helicopter to a hospital, said Ms. Gudmundsdottir. She said that the two were helped off the volcano in vehicles. Ms. Gudmundsdottir said she expected more tourists to arrive in the coming days, especially after dark when the fiery lava can be seen against Iceland's night sky. She said that she knows how many people have been there, but we don't know how many people have been there, but we know it's many and we know the next days it's going to be more. We can't say, Stay away. We are not locking the place. The government said that the eruption was considered to be relatively small and that the risk to populated areas and critical infrastructure was low. Fissure eruptions do not usually result in large explosions or signficant columns of ash flying into the stratosphere, the statement said. The government said it was still advising people not to visit the site. The Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management said on Thursday that the eruption site is a dangerous area and conditions can change quickly. It warned that toxic gas can accumulate when the wind decreases, that new lava fountains can open with little warning and that lava can flow quickly across the ground. The fissure is about nine miles from a major transportation hub, Keflavik Airport, and about 16 miles from the Reykjavik metropolitan area, the government said. Since the series of earthquakes started last weekend, we have been expecting an eruption somewhere in this area, said Katrin Jakobsdottir, Iceland's prime minister. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and now we can also benefit from the experience gained from last year s eruption. There is a long history of volcanic activity in Iceland, which has more than 30 active volcanoes. The country straddles two tectonic plates that are divided by an undersea mountain chain that oozes molten hot rock, or magma. Quakes occur when the magma pushes through the plates.