Grindavík

Grindavík (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈkrɪntaˌviːk] ) is a fishing town in the Southern Peninsula district of Iceland, not far from Þorbjörn, a tuya (a type of flat-topped, steep-sided volcano). It is one of the few towns with a harbour on this coast. Most of the inhabitants work in the fishing industry. The Blue Lagoon, Grindavík's première attraction, is located 5 kilometres (3 mi) from the town center. In November 2023, in the midst of escalating and severe seismic activity, a state of emergency was declared and the town evacuated. On 18 December 2023, at around 22:00 local time (GMT), the Sundhnúkur volcano erupted. The eruption was close to Hagafell, about 3 kilometres (2 mi) northeast of Grindavík. A risk was also posed to Svartsengi Power Station. Fountains of lava, up to 100 metres (330 ft) high, could be seen from Iceland's capital, Reykjavík. Authorities said they were highly prepared. The volcano erupted again on February 8 for the third time since December, this time at the edge of the town, and the lava flow destroyed a few buildings and infrastructure. The residents of Grindavík had remained evacuated. On February 20, the residents were allowed to return to their homes, but on March 2 Grindavík was again evacuated because of new seismic activity. On March 16, a fourth eruption began near the site of the first eruption, which ended on 8 May. A fifth eruption began as a fissure on 29 May, but the eruptive activity quickly localized to a primary edifice in Sundhnúkur crater row, close to the northern edge of Grindavík town. This eruption ended on 22 June.