The Caribbean island of San Vicente is covered in ash after the eruption of La Soufriere volcano | Scientist

The volcanic activity has caused thousands of people to flee in search of safer places. Houses, buildings and roads were covered. Around 16,000 people live in areas subject to eviction orders.

“The island, which has a population of more than 110,000 people, seemed to be a winter paradise, despite being covered with ashes,” the news portal news784.com wrote.

Visibility in some areas was very limited, while smoke in the capital, Kingstown, on the other side of the island, caused a slight haze of ash, according to the portal.

“Sanvicentinos woke up to a torrential rain of ash and a strong sulfur smell has now transported to the capital,” the local emergency agency wrote on Twitter.

Prime Minister Ralph Gonçalves said on Saturday that there is no water supply in most of the island and that the country’s airspace is closed due to smoke. Around 3,000 people spent Friday night in bomb shelters.

“It’s a huge operation that we are facing,” Gonçalves told NBC News.

He also said that his government is in contact with other countries that have offered help, including Guyana and Venezuela.

The initial eruption of La Soufriere volcano, the highest volcano in San Vicente and the Grenadines, ejected hot ash and smoke to a height of nearly 6,000 meters on Friday morning.

A second secondary eruption occurred yesterday afternoon, creating an ash cloud about 4,000 meters high, according to the University of the West Indies Center for Seismic Research.

La Soufriere volcano, which has a height of 1,235 meters, has not erupted since 1979, and its largest eruption occurred more than a century ago, in 1902, when more than a thousand people died.

On Friday afternoon (9), the disaster management agency said, all people living in the red danger zone have been moved to safer areas.

Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises said in a statement that they would send two ships to help with the evacuation missions.

Local media reported that the evacuees will be transferred to shelters in other cities in the island chain or to other areas in the Caribbean that have provided assistance, such as Barbados and Santa Luzia.