Situation report on the volcanic eruption in Southern Iceland
Travelling restrictions remain in the area around where a volcanic eruption begun in Southern Iceland late Saturday night. Traffic on main roads has been reopened but travellers in the area are advised to exercise caution, follow instructions and not to enter restricted areas, which are marked.
Passengers flying to or from Iceland are advised to follow updated travel information on http://www.kefairport.is/English/. For newscoverage in English, see: http://www.icelandreview.com/daily_news/
The location of the eruption is 120 km east of Reykjavik, in the highland, in an unhabited area between the glaciers Eyjafjallajokull and Myrdalsjokull. It is on a popular summer hiking route, Fimmvorduhals, but no travellers were in the area at the time of the eruption.
No casualities or damages are reported due to the eruption which is described by geophysicists as small compared to volcanic eruptions in the last decades. They stress that it is impossible to predict how long the volcanic eruption will last.
The Civil Protection authorities maintains travel restricition on roads leading to the area and evacuation of 14 farms in the worst case scenario the eruption increases and causes flooding.
The Civil Protection authorities and geophysicists are monitoring the situation closely.