Montserrat Volcano Observatory


Morning Report
Report for the period 16:00 19 January
to 07:00 20 January 1997
The current alert level is ORANGE


The overall level of activity at the volcano was low overnight. It was dominated by a small to moderate sized rockfalls from the dome and a few volcano tectonic earthquakes which occurred more or less evenly spaced over the reporting period. Judging from the level of tremor on the seismic records it would appear that venting was at a very low level.

The summit of the volcano is covered with cloud this morning and no views of the crater area have been possible. Brief views of the dome yesterday revealed that its shape had changed since the previous day, with further rapid growth of the October 1 dome near Castle Peak. The growth has been focused in this area since the large pyroclastic flow on Thursday morning.

Despite the low level of activity, the southeastern face of the dome remains very unstable. Further collapses and pyroclastic flows into the Tar River Valley may occur during the next few days. If a major dome collapse happens, an explosive eruption is possible, in the same way that an explosion followed a major dome collapse on September 17/18. At this moment zone E, which includes Corkhill and the airport, remains safe. The Tar River area is extremely dangerous, and should not be entered under any circumstances.


Montserrat Volcano Observatory