Volcano continues rocking Caribbean island of St. Vincent. UN appeals for international help

As an explosive volcano continues to rock the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Wednesday, the country’s prime minister once more appealed to those still remaining in the danger zone to leave.

“For heaven’s sake leave. Do not risk anymore of your life and limb,” Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves told people still in La Soufrière’s red zone.

Gonsalves’ appeal came as the 4,000-feet tall La Soufrière volcano continues to bury much of the country’s northern communities underneath ash. The lead geologist confirmed that avalanches of hot gasses, volcanic dust and boulders were now affecting new communities in the volcano’s path.

Richard Robertson’s assessment came as United Nations and Caribbean emergency disaster officials also warned Wednesday of a burgeoning humanitarian crisis amid the uncertainty of when the rumbling volcano will cease spewing hot gasses and ashes.

While intervals between the explosions had grown longer, Robertson said the volcano’s danger had widened because of the blasts — known as pyroclastic flows. Once the flows come out of the mountain and valley, Robertson said, “they just spread in all directions if there is nothing stopping them.”

“The only thing that stops them is the amount of energy that they have,” said Robertson, who photographed another explosive eruption Wednesday morning. “If they have enough strength in them, if they have enough energy, they will just keep flowing.”

The volcano began erupting on Friday after more than 40 years of being dormant. The ash spread to neighboring islands and caused the closure of the airport in Barbados because of poor visibility. The ash has also affected nearby St. Lucia and Grenada.

Didier Trebucq, the U.N. resident coordinator for Barbados and the eastern Caribbean, said Wednesday the explosions are ongoing and they expect them to continue over the coming weeks.

“We are facing a situation with a great deal of uncertainty and also, a humanitarian crisis that is growing.and that may continue for weeks and months,” Trebucq said in a briefing with reporters at U.N. headquarters in New York.

Of the island-nation’s 1110,000 people — 20,000 from 30 villages in the red zone had been displaced , he said. As of Wednesday, there were 4,000 evacuees in 87 government-run shelters. Trebucq noted that while these 20,000 people are at risk of food insecurity because of crops being ruined by the ash and the hot gasses, “in reality 100 percent of the population is indirectly affected by the situation.”

The United Nations, which is providing assistance to St. Vincent and also looking at helping other neighboring islands affected by the disaster, was preparing to launch a humanitarian funding appeal, he said.

“St. Vincent and the Grenadines is not only heavily dependent on tourism but this is also one of the islands that has a fairly good agriculture sector so the crops have been destroyed is one area that is severely affected,” Trebucq said. “This is a crisis that is going tot last certainly more than six months in the sub region, in St. Vincent and other islands.”

One area that was critical was the lack of clean water, he said, as he stressed for the need for the international community to help. Another priority he said was cots and hygiene material. The U.N., he added, was also looking to provide cash vouchers to displaced residents.

Trebucq also said that many facilitates around the eastern Caribbean have been affected by the ashes, and cleaning up the debris was also important. The U.N. was trying to mobilize experts so that it can provide a plan for St. Vincent and possibly the other islands.

The National Emergency Management Organization of St. Vincent has cautioned that while ash may fall like snow, it is deadly and people should avoid playing in it.

Trebucq said the ongoing disaster in St. Vincent underscored the vulnerability of small island states to climate change and natural disasters. What is happening in St. Vincent, he said, “just mirrors the extreme vulnerability of these countries. This is why really I call on the international community to extend support, they need it.”

“The situation is uncertain,” he added. “It can rapidly deteriorate.”

Elizabeth Riley, executive director of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency said during a press conference the agency was closely monitoring the situation but also concerned about hurricane season — which is two months away on June 1.

“This is going to bring another level of complexity to our colleague in St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” she said.

Additionally, Riley appealed to Caribbean nationals who want to send relief items to St. Vincent and the Grenadines to coordinate with their national disaster offices.

“Given the level of pressure that they are under, we absolutely don’t want to create another layer of a challenge for them to be sending relief which is outside of the coordination mechanisms,” she said. “I know that many entities are absolutely well meaning, but please stay in touch with your national disaster offices.”

Riley said CDEMA has created official bank accounts allowing for direct donations to be made to the La Soufrière relief efforts and the Regional Disaster Response Fund for those who want to help. The information is available on its website https://www.cdema.org/

On Tuesday, U.S. volunteers with Aerial Recovery Group, a global emergency management firm, and Global Empowerment Mission, a disaster relief non-profit, began offloading footage of the first containers of aid being delivered and distributed in St Vincent.