GRINDAVIK, Iceland – The southern peninsula of Iceland has been experiencing a series of volcanic activities that have resulted in a major crack on one of the streets, cutting off access to a small fishing town.
Thousands of earthquakes and tremors in the region have occurred in recent weeks along a 9-mile-long magma tunnel, or dike, just below the Earth’s surface.
Residents of the coastal town of Grindavík were evacuated due to the threat of a potential volcanic eruption. They were allowed to return home on Monday, but with a high probability of the volcano erupting in the following days, they gathered their belongings quickly.
As of 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, the Icelandic Met Office said 700 earthquakes have been recorded since midnight over the dike, the largest a magnitude 3.1 at Hagafell. Similarly high numbers were recorded on previous days.
Footage filmed by Ragnar Visage shows steam rising from a crack in the street and a nearby parking lot at the intersection of Austervegur and Stamphólsvegur streets in Grindavik.
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Nesvegur Road, which emergency officials had been using to access Grindavik, suffered extensive damage due to the seismic activity and had become impassable, the Icelandic Road Administration said.
“It is clear that the repair would be quite extensive,” the agency said. “The condition of the road has gotten worse day by day.”
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Iceland has the highest number of active volcanic systems in Europe, with more than 30 currently active.