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Authors: Robert Rapoza
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historically resulted in thousands of
deaths. Two famous examples were the eruptions of Krakatoa and Vesuvius.
Krakatoa was best known for its catastrophic eruption in 1883, which resulted
in over thirty-six thousand deaths, and the near destruction of its namesake
island. In comparison, Vesuvius, of course, was famous for its destruction of
the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 A.D. In the case of Vesuvius, an
estimated sixteen thousand people died due to hydrothermal pyroclastic flows.
If El Misti were to erupt, it would make the
destruction caused by these two volcanos pale in
comparison.
Worst
of all, there were many different ways the deaths would occur. When most people
think of volcanic eruptions, they think of hot lava spilling down the side of a
mountain, engulfing anything in its path. They also think of large chunks of
heated rock falling from the sky, crushing anything nearby. While these
horrifying outcomes are in fact accurate, they are only part of the picture.
While lava flows are certainly devastating to any structures in their path,
they are typically too slow to overtake people or animals. The true danger to
the unfortunate souls near an eruption site would be from pyroclastic flows.
These hellish mixtures of hot gas and ash can travel very quickly down the
slopes of volcanoes. They are so hot and choking that being caught in one means
certain death. Traveling at speeds of 100 to 200 kilometers per hour,
out-running a pyroclastic flow is not an option. If a volcano that is known for
producing them is looking like it may erupt soon, the only option is to leave
before it does.
Tom
realized that there were other dangers posed by El Misti .
He knew that atmospheric conditions might carry ash or lahars, a type of debris
flow, directly to a nearby city. Under these conditions, the death and
destruction could be even more severe. Entire cities could be covered under ash
and rock, causing the residents to choke, burn or smother in the deadly
cocktail of debris. After checking the latest weather reports, Tom confirmed
that the worst case scenario conditions were
developing.
Making
matters worse, Tom also realized that ash from El Misti could also wreak havoc on aircraft anywhere in the vicinity. With modern
aircraft engines operating at temperatures that are high enough to melt any ash
that is ingested, essentially tiny blobs of lava would be created inside the
engine. These blobs would then be forced back into other parts of the engine
where the temperatures are lower. At that time, the molten lava would solidify
on the turbine blades, blocking airflow and causing the engine to stall. This
likelihood, along with the probability that pyroclastic and lava flows could
render roads unusable, would further complicate rescue efforts.
As
all of these scenarios swirled around in Tom’s head, part of him wished that
someone else could be the responsible party on this rodeo. Of course, this
wasn’t the kind of information Tom would make public, as it wouldn’t exactly
inspire confidence in the troops. Years of experience successfully monitoring
other volcanos and coordinating evacuation plans
meant he was clearly the best-suited person to lead the VDAP team, hence his
appointment to the position.
Tom
was called back to reality at the voice of his assistant Keith Peterson.
“Tom,
the satellite imagery is in.”
“Thanks,
Keith. Call the team together and let’s have a look in the conference room in
ten minutes.”
“Sounds
good. I’ll get the crew together.”
Tom
walked to the conference room, running down the list of actions they would
take, based on the data they had received regarding El Misti .
If the signs were right, his team would make emergency plan recommendations to
protect the citizens in and around Arequipa.
His
team would be responsible for the various elements of the plan, including
evacuations. It would be a huge undertaking to develop and implement the
strategy, but of course a great
deaths. Two famous examples were the eruptions of Krakatoa and Vesuvius.
Krakatoa was best known for its catastrophic eruption in 1883, which resulted
in over thirty-six thousand deaths, and the near destruction of its namesake
island. In comparison, Vesuvius, of course, was famous for its destruction of
the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 A.D. In the case of Vesuvius, an
estimated sixteen thousand people died due to hydrothermal pyroclastic flows.
If El Misti were to erupt, it would make the
destruction caused by these two volcanos pale in
comparison.
Worst
of all, there were many different ways the deaths would occur. When most people
think of volcanic eruptions, they think of hot lava spilling down the side of a
mountain, engulfing anything in its path. They also think of large chunks of
heated rock falling from the sky, crushing anything nearby. While these
horrifying outcomes are in fact accurate, they are only part of the picture.
While lava flows are certainly devastating to any structures in their path,
they are typically too slow to overtake people or animals. The true danger to
the unfortunate souls near an eruption site would be from pyroclastic flows.
These hellish mixtures of hot gas and ash can travel very quickly down the
slopes of volcanoes. They are so hot and choking that being caught in one means
certain death. Traveling at speeds of 100 to 200 kilometers per hour,
out-running a pyroclastic flow is not an option. If a volcano that is known for
producing them is looking like it may erupt soon, the only option is to leave
before it does.
Tom
realized that there were other dangers posed by El Misti .
He knew that atmospheric conditions might carry ash or lahars, a type of debris
flow, directly to a nearby city. Under these conditions, the death and
destruction could be even more severe. Entire cities could be covered under ash
and rock, causing the residents to choke, burn or smother in the deadly
cocktail of debris. After checking the latest weather reports, Tom confirmed
that the worst case scenario conditions were
developing.
Making
matters worse, Tom also realized that ash from El Misti could also wreak havoc on aircraft anywhere in the vicinity. With modern
aircraft engines operating at temperatures that are high enough to melt any ash
that is ingested, essentially tiny blobs of lava would be created inside the
engine. These blobs would then be forced back into other parts of the engine
where the temperatures are lower. At that time, the molten lava would solidify
on the turbine blades, blocking airflow and causing the engine to stall. This
likelihood, along with the probability that pyroclastic and lava flows could
render roads unusable, would further complicate rescue efforts.
As
all of these scenarios swirled around in Tom’s head, part of him wished that
someone else could be the responsible party on this rodeo. Of course, this
wasn’t the kind of information Tom would make public, as it wouldn’t exactly
inspire confidence in the troops. Years of experience successfully monitoring
other volcanos and coordinating evacuation plans
meant he was clearly the best-suited person to lead the VDAP team, hence his
appointment to the position.
Tom
was called back to reality at the voice of his assistant Keith Peterson.
“Tom,
the satellite imagery is in.”
“Thanks,
Keith. Call the team together and let’s have a look in the conference room in
ten minutes.”
“Sounds
good. I’ll get the crew together.”
Tom
walked to the conference room, running down the list of actions they would
take, based on the data they had received regarding El Misti .
If the signs were right, his team would make emergency plan recommendations to
protect the citizens in and around Arequipa.
His
team would be responsible for the various elements of the plan, including
evacuations. It would be a huge undertaking to develop and implement the
strategy, but of course a great
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