[Geysers] Brad Scott in the news

[Freund, Udo]

Brad Scott has been monitoring volcanic and geyser activity on New
Zealand for many years.  FYI, there is new activity in the South
Pacific, along the "Ring of Fire", reported here:
AMBAE ISLAND, Vanuatu - An erupting volcano on this remote South Pacific
island burst into spectacular life Thursday - shooting steam and toxic
gases 9,845 feet into the sky.
Huge columns of dense white steam and muddy ash spewed above Ambae
Island to reach the greatest height seen since the Mt. Manaro volcano
began erupting Nov. 27.
Thousands of villagers have been evacuated from the path of a possible
lahar, or mud flow, that vulcanologists fear could burst over the crater
lip if the eruption continues or intensifies, sweeping away the flimsy
homes in its path.
A "red zone" has been declared around the volcano and several ships were
ready to evacuate islanders if the situation worsens dramatically.
Eruption 'could go either way'
New Zealand vulcanologist Brad Scott, who is on Ambae monitoring the
eruption, said "it remains a low-level eruption, but it could go either
way - worsen or slowly subside."
The plumes of steam and gases were bursting from a huge vent in the
middle of a muddy gray-brown Lake Vui in the crater - which before the
eruptions began last month was a picturesque calm aqua blue.
Pilot Charles Nelson of local charter company Flight Club Vila said the
lake "is looking like a huge grubby bowl of hot kava," referring to a
murky local drink made of the pounded roots of a local pepper plant
mixed with water.
Nelson was speaking after flying close to the erupting volcano Thursday
morning.
Dead trees ring the edge of the crater, while trees in dense jungle
nearby were covered in ash that has been belching from the volcano.
Local residents take shelter
The huge smoke, ash and gas plume cast a shadow over now deserted
villages clinging to the volcano's flank.
Some 5,000 villagers - half the island's population - are squatting in
townships in low-lying areas of the northwest and southeast corners of
the small island, one of more than 80 in the archipelago, which is
studded with active and dormant volcanoes. The islands, with a total
population of 200,000 people, are 1,400 miles northeast of Sydney,
Australia.
"We're worried but it's still not increasing its activity and remains on
level 2," or yellow alert, local transport operator Simean Tali said.
The ships mean "we should get off (the island) if it goes up," he added.
Two hospitals on the island have been emptied of patients, and teams of
doctors and nurses were on call to fly to Ambae from the capital, Port
Vila, if a major eruption occurs, the National Disaster Management
Office said.
"Maybe nothing is going to happen, but it is better to be ready than
not," the Daily Post newspaper quoted Prime Minister Ham Lini as saying.
Ambae, an hour's flight northeast from Port Vila, lies near the islands
of Pentecost and Maewo, which could be used to help resettle people
displaced by a major eruption.

Thanks,
Happy Holidays!
Udo Freund
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