Balanced News Blog

A volcano erupted Thursday in southwestern Colombia, spewing smoke and ash, and raising fears for the safety of nearby villagers, officials said.

Police and emergency officials were on high alert after the 14,110-foot Galeras volcano became active at dawn and dumped heaps of ash on the city of Pasto, 12 miles away.

“It was a brief eruption of ash for 30 minutes that was not preceded by a temblor inside the volcano,” said Marta Lucia Calvache of Colombia’s Volcanology Institute. “But there is still a thin plume of ash leaving the crater, and we can’t rule out the possibility of further eruptions.”

Thousands of families living under the shadow of the volcano have refused to leave their homes and crops. As one blogger points out, aren’t them crops going to be worthless under tons of ash or lava?

Source: MSNBC.