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nabanga

Kava Enthusiast
Not to detract from the seriousness of this at all but it's not quite like reported. Its not an eruption as such (no lava flow) but large ash emissions. The ash even falls on us in Santo 50km away, so it must be a nightmare living 5km from the cone.

The govt have issued a decree that everyone should be evacuated, mostly to neighbouring Maewo, but they don't have the means to effect the evacuation, and most people don't want to go to Maewo but chose Santo if they have to move. Many on the side of Ambae least affected by the ashfall want to stay.
So time will tell what the extent of the evacuations will be but many people don't want to give up their ancestral home unless they absolutely have to - and people on the upwind side of the island are all hedging their bets.
I think most are hoping it will just go back to sleep like Lopevi near Epi & Paama did in 2006.



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TheKavaFlow

Kava Podcaster
Not to detract from the seriousness of this at all but it's not quite like reported. Its not an eruption as such (no kava flow) but large ash emissions. The ash even falls on us in Santo 50km away, so it must be a nightmare living 5km from the cone.

The govt have issued a decree that everyone should be evacuated, mostly to neighbouring Maewo, but they don't have the means to effect the evacuation, and most people don't want to go to Maewo but chose Santo if they have to move. Many on the side of Ambae least affected by the ashfall want to stay.
So time will tell what the extent of the evacuations will be but many people don't want to give up their ancestral home unless they absolutely have to - and people on the upwind side of the island are all hedging their bets.
I think most are hoping it will just go back to sleep like Lopevi near Epi & Paama did in 2006.



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No kava flow? That's too bad. I've been meaning to get back into it...

On a serious note -- how has it affected the other islands like your own?
 

nabanga

Kava Enthusiast
No kava flow? That's too bad. I've been meaning to get back into it...

On a serious note -- how has it affected the other islands like your own?
Haha yes great autocorrect...it says something that when I type 'lava' my phone thinks 'oh, he must mean kava'
There's some ash on East coast Santo, Luganville, and north Pentecost, but it's mostly confined to Ambae.

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kastom_lif

Kava Lover
Not to detract from the seriousness of this at all but it's not quite like reported. Its not an eruption as such (no lava flow) but large ash emissions. The ash even falls on us in Santo 50km away, so it must be a nightmare living 5km from the cone.
Right. Fortunately there is no lava, yet there plenty of ash which is also qute nasty. It smothers gardens and turns water cachements to undrinkable acid. The risk to food and water is why the government want people to evacuate.

If you compare volcanic gas output, Ambae is pumping surprisingly little. Check out this map of sulfur dioxide levels...


297C68DB-17FB-4CE8-958B-EF7D4CD5FB86.png


Ambae is the island next to the "e" in Luganville. Pretty much every volcano from Tinakula up in Solomon Islands way down to Matthew and Hunter are all puffing more SO2 than Ambae at the moment.

But yet Ambae IS active. The risk is localized, very heavy ash fall, rather than widespread vog. Radio NZ reported the following recently...

Based on satellite data, webcam observations, and wind model data, the Wellington VAAC reported that during 17-24 July ash plumes from the vent at Ambae’s Lake Voui rose to altitudes of 2.1-5.5 km (7,000-18,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted N, NE, E, and SE. According to news articles, activity intensified on 17 July with significant ashfall impacting the N and E parts of the island, causing dark conditions for residents. Rumbling noises were reported at Penama Provincial Headquarters at Saratamata, more than 30 km away. Volcanologists conducting field work in the areas noted widespread damage and disruption to the local population; roads going to the W part of the island had been washed away.
If you've following the ongoing Kilauea eruption, Ambae is sort of like Halemaʻumaʻu on steroids: A caldera underneath a lake, blasting ash plumes up into the air. The lake water can interact with the volcano to cause sudden, large pyroclastic explosions.

The periods of calm between eruptions can be misleading. Pyroclastic events can be super bad, though. There was a pyroclastic event on the west flank of Ambrym in the early 1900's that completely wiped out several villages.

Water + Lava = big bada boom. This is a video of Tavurvur, near Rabaul, New Britain, PNG a couple of years ago:
 
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verticity

I'm interested in things
More pictures of the affected areas here that were posted on Yumi Toktok Stret:


It's really a lot of ash with just a few green leaves to remind you that these are not black and white photos. I suppose the rains will eventually wash it away, but I don't see how anyone could live there right now..

ambae.jpg
 

verticity

I'm interested in things
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