Iceland Volcanic Emits New Ash Cloud

A new plume of ash has been emitted by the Icelandic volcano that wreaked havoc on European flights last month.

The Eyjafjoell volcano has surged back to life letting off a cloud of ash measuring up to four miles high.

"The eruption has changed back to an explosive eruption, lava has stopped flowing and most of the magma gets scattered due to explosions in the crater," said a statement from the Icelandic Met Office and Institute of Earth Science.

"The ash plume rises high above the crater and considerable ash fall can be expected in wind direction. No signs of the eruption ending soon."

The move has prompted authorities to consider re-routing transatlantic flights. Ireland has had to shut some airports for the third time this week.

The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) warned a "massive ash cloud" 1,000 miles long and 700 miles wide was hovering over the Atlantic and drifting into the country's airspace.

"While the northerly winds are keeping the bulk of the cloud out in the Atlantic, the increased size of the cloud is encroaching on Irish airspace along the west coast of Ireland," said the regulator in a statement.

Six airports would be closed until 1.00pm on Friday. Among those shutting down were Shannon and Donegal.

The fresh disruption came after Europe's skies were closed for up to a week last month by the eruption of Eyjafjoell.

It was the biggest aerial shutdown in Europe since World War II, with more than 100,000 flights cancelled and eight million passengers affected.

Signs of change in volcano's eruptions

A geophysicist in Iceland says that though the tremors are getting stronger, there is less ash coming from the volcano.

Iceland volcano throws Calais into turmoil

Iceland volcano throws Calais into turmoil
The Icalandic volcano that has emptied Europe's skies of passengers has had the opposite effect on channel ports.
After years of gradual decline, as passengers deserted its ferries in favour of flight or high-speed rail, ferry company ticket offices are suddenly under siege.

Travellers frantic to get home are converging on the Channel from around the world after their flights were grounded by the volcanic ash cloud.
The parking area at the ferry terminal is a scene of chaos – with hire cars bearing an array of foreign number plates abandoned haphazardly at jagged angles and on grass verges.

Some are left with their doors and boots hanging open – as people grab their bags and rush towards the terminal, desperate to catch the first boat.

But there is no point in hurrying: the queue for foot-passenger places snakes around the building, and passengers must wait two hours in the hot sun to buy a ticket.

Inside the building, people lie asleep on the floor and on plastic benches, exhausted after driving thousands of miles across the continent.

Others climb out of a constant stream of taxis pulling up outside the terminal – some of which have come from Romania, Spain and Italy.

Alfred and Veronica Nel arrived with their family in Calais by taxi on Tuesday morning after setting off from South Africa on Sunday.

They flew 11 hours to Madrid, where they caught a 16-hour bus ride to Paris. From there, they paid a taxi driver £400 to take them to the port.

“We are all absolutely exhausted,” said Mrs Nel, a 42-year-old book-keeper from Luton.

“We had already paid £3,450 for our flights, and now we’ve had to fund all this on top. It’s completely unexpected and it’s been awful.

“I just can’t wait to get home. The first thing I’m going to do is crash out on the bed and go to sleep.”

Mrs Nel’s 15-year-old daughter, Dominique, has already missed her final GCSE art exam and is distraught at the thought that she may fail.

Her 21-year-old son, Michael, has also missed a raft of deadlines for his degree in construction management at Nottingham Trent university.

“The whole situation is pretty shocking really,” he said. “We haven’t slept or washed for days – we’re exhausted and I’ve missed loads of really important work.”

Staff at the ferry terminal are reeling from the chaos. The port hasn’t been so busy in years, and they are completely unprepared to deal with this number of passengers.

One male employee, who asked not to be named, said: “We don’t have enough space for foot passengers and there isn’t enough room in the car park or waiting areas for all the people who are arriving from everywhere.

“People are just dumping their cars all over the place and running into the building. It is chaotic.

“The industry has been in decline for years so we don’t have enough staff to deal with all this, but the company won’t take any more on because they know this isn’t going to last.”

The chaos in Calais cannot go on forever: when the ash cloud dissipates, most passengers will abandon the port and take to the skies.

But with fresh eruptions from the Icelandic volcano, and Gordon Brown telling British tourists to converge on the Channel ports, the havoc is far from over.