Guatemala volcano: Panic as deadly new eruption prompts major evacuation

Volcan de Fuego kills at least 75 people, while nearly 200 remain missing

Nearly 200 people remain missing after the Fuego volcano in Guatemala erupted late on Sunday, killing at least 75 people.

The Volcan de Fuego erupted again on Tuesday, forcing half a dozen communities near the mountain to evacuate and closing a national motorway.

Rescue workers, as well as police and journalists, were hurried to leave the area as sirens wailed and loudspeakers blared: “Evacuate!”

Many local residents took no chances after they were given little to no warning before the volcano’s earlier eruption.

Dozens of people walked along roadsides carrying children or a few belongings beside paralysed traffic in parts of Escuintla township, which sits south of the volcano.

While only some communities in Escuintla are under an evacuation order, many businesses have closed and people are leaving.

Mirna Priz wept as she sat on a rock at a crossroads, with a suitcase in front of her and her 11-year-old son, Allen, and their dog Cara Sucia by her side.

“You feel powerless,” she said. “I don’t know where I’m going to go. To leave my things, everything I have.”

But after seeing what happened on Sunday, she was afraid to stay.

The Central American country’s seismology and volcanology institute said smoke billowing from the volcano’s summit could produce a “curtain” of ash which could reach 20,000 feet above sea level, putting air traffic in danger.

When Fuego erupted on Sunday, super-heated volcanic debris swept through small communities near the volcano, with little warning for residents. (Super-heating occurs when a liquid is hotter than its boiling point, but doesn’t boil.)

It also blasted columns of ash and smoke 6.2 miles into the sky.

Thousands of people have been evacuated as a result, the national disaster agency, Conred, said.

Of the 75 bodies which have been recovered, only 23 have been identified, the country’s National Institute of Forensic Sciences said, while 192 people were listed as missing.

Among those fleeing was retiree Pantaleon Garcia, who was able to load his grandchildren into the back of a pickup with a jug of water and some food. They were heading to the homes of relatives in another town.

“You have to be prepared, for the children,” he said.

Volcan de Fuego, which means “Volcano of Fire” in Spanish, is one of several active volcanoes among 34 in total in Guatemala.

It lies near the colonial city of Antigua, a Unesco world heritage site that has survived several major eruptions.

The latest activity has been mostly on the far side of the volcano, which faces the Pacific coast.

Additional reporting by agencies