Ecuador Remains on Edge as Cotopaxi Stirs

Ecuador remained on alert Sunday due to increased volcanic activity at Cotopaxi, a day after President Rafael Correa declared a national state of emergency.

In the early hours of the morning, the government said it was continuing to monitor the situation on the Cotopaxi volcano. A few hours earlier, security coordination minister Cesar Navas said a yellow alert would remain in place, after authorities reported Cotopaxi had spewed ash 5 kilometers into the sky Saturday evening. That morning, nearby towns and small cities such as parts of Latacunga, Mulalo, and Lasso were evacuated.

Cotopaxi, 50 kilometers south of the capital, exploded twice in the early hours of Friday. The government says this does not signify an eruption is imminent, though authorities say they aren't taking any chances. Correa has declared a national emergency – a measure he said would ensure the government can move swiftly to provide aid to those affected by the volcanic activity.

Correa explained during his Saturday television show, “What does this (state of emergency) allow me to do? To take resources from wherever necessary, except education and health, in order to attend to a potential emergency. To mobilize resources that may be necessary, including private ones – to take a car, a truck, and go to Cotopaxi, if necessary, and transport people. And to control the flow of communication. And that is very important. In these types of emergencies, people say all sorts of things, and it can provoke panic, and therefore more problems.”

The president explained that while there are no lahars (debris flows) or glaciers melting so far, because of pyroclastic flows (hot ashes, gas and rock), glacier melting could be provoked.

Ecuador’s Cotopaxi volcano is the second highest active volcano in the world.