I see this picture a lot, with all kinds of captions and explanations that are more or less accurate:
But it’s actually on the island of Heimaey, Iceland, which is an island with a pretty interesting history, specifically the Eldfell eruption of 1973 that took place there.
On the 23d of January 1973, at 2am, a volcanic fissure opened up with barely any warning only 1km away from the island’s only town. The fissure quickly grew from 300m to 3km in length and spewing large amounts of lava.
After a few hours, the volcanic activity concentrated on one vent, which grew into a sizeable cinder cone over the course of a few days.
Luckily, the fishing boats were still docked in the harbour due to previous bad weather, and the local population was quickly evacuated. There were no casualties other than a man who broke into a pharmacy and suffocated from the toxic fumes.
The eruption lasted 5 months, burning many houses and burying most of the town in ash. A lava flow threatened to cut off the harbour, which was the inhabitants’ main source of income. A plan involving spraying the advancing lava with seawater to slow its advance was put in place, a slow but effective process. The harbour was saved, and after the eruption ended, most of the island’s population returned.
Eldfell hasn’t erupted since, but who knows? This year’s been weird.
