Seismic activity triples at Chile’s Ilaima volcano – yellow alert

March 26, 2012 – Santiago de Chile – Chilean authorities maintain state of alert in the Araucania region, due to increased seismic activity at Llaima volcano, one of the most active in the country and in South America. The regional governor, Andres Molina, confirmed that a yellow alert continues to be in effect for the communities of Melipeuco, Cunco, Vilcún, Curacautín and Lonquimay, because there are clear signs of “out-gassing in the inner perimeter” of the Llaima. Molina said that on Monday will meet the emergency committee to assess the status of the volcano, then it is found that in recent weeks the number quakes have tripled within the massif, which is located in the Andes, about 600 kilometers south of this capital. In geology, a massif is a section of a planet’s crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. The regional authority also noted that access was restricted in a radius of four kilometers around the volcano, especially in the tourist area of Conguillío Park, where last weekend, authorities evacuated over a hundred people. According to records provided by the expert technicians Fernando Gil, Volcano Observatory of the Southern Andes, one cannot rule out an eruption and although volcanic activity cannot be perceived by the inhabitants of the towns that are on yellow alert. The Llaima, more than three thousand meters in elevation, is located 76 kilometers northeast of the city of Temuco, capital of the region of La Araucania. The Llaima volcano last erupted in 2009. On March 25, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck northeast of the region at a depth of about 35 km (21 miles) and this may further acerbate the volcanic belt of this region of Chile. –Prensa Latina  (translated)