December 30, 2013 -- Updated 1737 GMT (0137 HKT)
Thousands of residents in El Salvador were evacuated and flights
canceled after the Chaparrastique volcano erupted Sunday morning for the
first time in 37 years. FULL STORY
El Salvador's Chaparrastique volcano erupts for first time in 37 years
December 29, 2013 -- Updated 2340 GMT (0740 HKT)
View of the Chaparrastique volcano spewing ashes and smoke in southern El Salvador on December 29.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: Avianca announces the cancellation of 33 flights into and out of the country
- NEW: El Salvador's president says authorities don't know if the volcano will erupt again
- Chaparrastique sent a plume of gas and ash about 3 miles high, environmental ministry says
- Some flights to San Salvador, the capital, were redirected to other airports to avoid the ash
"We are not certain there
will be new eruptions, but we can't rule out that possibility either,"
President Mauricio Funes said in a televised address urging residents
near the volcano in the department of San Miguel to leave their homes
and head to shelters.
According to the Ministry
of Environment and Natural Resources, the eruption began at 10:30 a.m.
and produced a column of gas and ash approximately 5 kilometers (3.1
miles) high.
Authorities warned residents not to approach the area near the volcano, which is located in eastern El Salvador.
The international airport
in San Salvador, the capital, redirected some flights to other
airports, including in Guatemala, to avoid the ash.
Avianca airlines
announced Sunday night that it had canceled 33 flights scheduled to
arrive and depart from El Salvador as a precautionary measure due to the
ash cloud. Iberia and United Airlines also canceled flights that had
been scheduled to arrive in San Salvador Sunday night.
This is the first eruption of Chaparrastique in 37 years.
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