Residents closest to Llaima volcano are evacuated

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TEMUCO. -  Fifteen people living in the area of Santa Elena have been evacuated to Curacautín, a town 670 kilometers away in the south of Chile. Santa Elena is the community located closest to volcano Llaima which has been erupting since last week.

According to the Interior Ministry National Emergency Office, known as “Onemi”, the measure has been taken to protect those living in the area, the majority of which are elderly.

The volcano has kept Onemi on a yellow alert within the region, which is being aided by police and military forces.

This is the second time the 3,125 meter-high Llaima volcano has erupted this year.  The peak, located in Conguillo National Park in Chile’s Ninth Region, has registered some 60 historical eruptions.

After the eruption, a river of lava almost 2 kilometers long that lights up the volcano at night could  be seen early yesterday morning from the cities of Temuco, Villarrica and Pucón, some 100 kilometers away.