Story By: Jonathan Macias, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
Video Credit: CEN/@RSN.CR
This is the spectacular moment Costa Rica’s Poas volcano erupts into life sending gas, ash and rocks up to 6,561 feet into the sky.
The video was reportedly recorded on Monday at 5:40 by a camera set up by the National Seismological Network of Costa Rica (RSN-UCR) in the Poas Volcano National Park in the Alajuela Province on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.
In the footage, an explosive water-table eruption expels ash and rock fragments high into the air. A cloud of ash and gas then covers the camera before it passes and the crater can be seen again.
Local media report that the wind conditions at the crater quickly moved the material to the west and southwest of the crater.
According to local media, after a day of analysis, the authorities from the National Emergency Commission (CNE) in Costa Rica decided that the Poas Volcano National Park should remain closed today (Tuesday).
The gas column reportedly reached at least 2,000 metres (6,561 feet) high and lasted five minutes. Experts from the Vulcanological and Seismological Observatory of Costa Rica (OVSICORI) reported that the activity was hydrothermal, that is, produced by rain.
Blas Sanchez, a geologist from the CNE, said that the volcano must remain closed to the public as its activity has not stopped.
Sanchez said: “We recommended keeping the park closed, because of these spontaneous eruptions that have reached some of the touristy viewpoints in the park and that could cause problems.”
The expert said that only “the area of the national park and the viewpoint is closed, and tourists can still visit the nearby tourist areas of Poas which are completely safe.”
According to local authorities, the Poas Volcano has been in constant activity since 2017 and it was closed for a year until it reopened again in August 2018.
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