PLOSKY TOLBACHIK VOLCANOPLOSKY TOLBACHIK VOLCANO IN KAMCHATKA IN KAMCHATKA
ERUPTS AFTER 40 YEARS ERUPTS AFTER 40 YEARSJanuary 6, 2013January 6, 2013
Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, Vienna,
Virginia, USA
PLOSKY TOLBACHIK SPEWS ASH 4 KM: JAN. 6, 2013
The Plosky Tolbachik volcano, which emitted lava, poisonous gases, and ash, is located in
Kamchatka peninsula, hundreds of miles (km) from the nearest residential areas.
Tourists rushing to the area to view the once-in-40 years spectacle have been warned
about the toxic gases.
Until the lava-spewing fissure that occurred on November 27, 2012, and the current eruption phase, Plosky Tolbachik had
been dormant since 1976.
The current eruption, which is expected to continue for some
time, has not yet forced any changes in the airline flight
patterns over this part of Russia.
This type of eruption, known as a strombolian eruption, is
usually moderate.
BACKGROUND
VOLCANOES are awesome manifestations of heat flowing at hot spots (e.g.,
Hawaii and Iceland) and in subduction zones (e.g., along almost the entire Pacific Rim).
GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION OF 1,500 ACTIVE VOLCANOES
ACTIVE VOLCANOES
COMMUNITYCOMMUNITYDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATION
HAZARDS: GROUND SHAKING GROUND FAILURE SURFACE FAULTING TECTONIC DEFORMATION TSUNAMI RUN UP AFTERSHOCKS
•HAZARD MAPS•INVENTORY•VULNERABILITY•LOCATION
VOLCANOESVOLCANOES
RISK
ACCEPTABLE RISK
UNACCEPTABLE RISK
VOLCANO DISASTER RISK VOLCANO DISASTER RISK REDUCTIONREDUCTION
•PREVENTION/MITIGATION•PREPAREDNESS•EMERGENCY RESPONSE•RECOVERY and RECONSTRUCTION
POLICY OPTIONSPOLICY OPTIONS
VOLCANO HAZARDS (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)
• VERTICAL PLUME • ASH AND TEPHRA• LATERAL BLAST• PYROCLASTIC FLOWS
VOLCANO HAZARDS (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)
• LAVA FLOWS AND TOXIC GASES
• LAHARS• EARTHQUAKES (related to the
movement of lava)• “VOLCANIC WINTER”
LATERAL BLAST
VOLCANICERUPTIONS
PYROCLASTIC FLOWS
FLYING DEBRIS
VOLCANIC ASH
LAVA FLOWS
LAHARS
TOXIC GASES
CAUSES OF RISK
CASE HISTORIES
HAZARDSHAZARDS
ELEMENTS OF VOLCANO ELEMENTS OF VOLCANO RISKRISK
EXPOSUREEXPOSURE
VULNERABILITYVULNERABILITY LOCATIONLOCATION
RISKRISK
VOLCANOES CAUSING MAJOR LOSS OF LIFE
Three past volcanic eruptions caused major loss of life: 1) Krakatoa, Indonesia, where 32,000 were killed in 1883; 2) Mt. Pelee, Martinique, where 29,000 were killed in 1902; and 3) Nevada del Ruiz, Colombia, where 23,000 were killed in 1985.
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES FOR VOLCANOES
• FORECASTS OF ERUPTIONS
• MONITORING TECHNOLOGIES (E.G., DEFORMATION, SEISMICITY, GAS EMISSIONS, REMOTE SENSING, WINDS)
• WARNING SYSTEMS
• DATABASES FOR EACH VOLCANO
• COMPUTER MODELS OF VOLCANOES
• MAPS • DISASTER
SCENARIOS• HAZARD
ASSESSMENT • RISK ASSESSMENT
MONITORING TECHNOLOGIES
.