Volcán De Fuego
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Volcán de Fuego (; Spanish for "Volcano of Fire", often shortened to Fuego) or Chi Q'aq' ( Kaqchikel for "where the fire is") is an active
stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...
in
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
, on the borders of Chimaltenango, Escuintla and Sacatepéquez departments. Part of the mountain range of the Sierra Madre, the volcano sits about west of
Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...
, one of Guatemala's most famous cities and a tourist destination. It has erupted frequently, most recently in
June June is the sixth and current month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars—the latter the most widely used calendar in the world. Its length is 30 days. June succeeds May and precedes July. This month marks the start of su ...
and
November November is the eleventh and penultimate month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 30 days. November was the ninth month of the calendar of Romulus . November retained its name (from the Latin ''novem'' meaning " ...
2018, 23 September 2021, 11 December 2022, 4 May 2023, and 4 June 2025. Fuego is famous for being almost constantly active at a low level. Small explosions of gas and ash occur every 15 to 20 minutes, but larger eruptions are less frequent.
Andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predomina ...
and
basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
lava types dominate. The volcano is joined with Acatenango volcano to its north and collectively the complex is known as La Horqueta. Between Fuego and Acatenango is La Meseta, a scarp marking the remains of an older volcano that collapsed around 8,500 years ago. Fuego volcano started to grow after the collapse of La Meseta.


Early expeditions

In 1881, French writer Eugenio Dussaussay climbed the volcano, then practically unexplored. First, he needed to ask for permission to climb from the Sacatepéquez governor, who gave him a letter for the
Alotenango Alotenango (''Alo-tenamitl-co''; translation "in the wall of the parrots") (variation: Atchalan) is a town and municipality in the Guatemalan department of Sacatepéquez. According to the 2018 census, the town has a population of 23,358. The mu ...
mayor asking for his assistance with guides to help the explorer and his companion, Tadeo Trabanino. They wanted to climb the central peak, unexplored at the time, but could not find a guide and had to climb to the active cone, which had a recent eruption in 1880. British archeologist
Alfred Percival Maudslay Alfred Percival Maudslay (18 March 1850 – 22 January 1931) was a British colonial administrator and archaeologist. He pioneered the careful archaeological study of the Maya ruins and the results of his field work were presented in ''Biolog ...
climbed the volcano on 7 January 1892. Here is how he described his expedition:


Notable eruptions


1717 destruction of Santiago de los Caballeros

The strongest earthquakes experienced by the city of Santiago de los Caballeros before its final move in 1776 were the San Miguel earthquakes in 1717. In the city, people also believed that the proximity of the Volcán de Fuego (English: Volcano of Fire) was the cause of earthquakes; the great architect Diego de Porres even said that all the earthquakes were caused by volcano explosions. On 27 August there was a strong eruption of Volcán de Fuego, which lasted until 30 August; the residents of the city asked for help to Santo Cristo of the cathedral and to the Virgen del Socorro who were sworn patrons of the Volcan de Fuego. On 29 August a Virgen del Rosario procession took to the streets after a century without leaving her temple, and there were many more holy processions until 29 September, the day of San Miguel. Early afternoon earthquakes were minor, but at about 7:00 pm there was a strong earthquake that forced residents to leave their homes; tremors and rumblings followed until four o'clock. The neighbors took to the streets and loudly confessed their sins, bracing for the worst. The San Miguel earthquake damaged the city considerably, to the point that some rooms and walls of the Royal Palace were destroyed. There was also a partial abandonment of the city, food shortages, lack of manpower and extensive damage to the city infrastructure; not to mention numerous dead and injured. These earthquakes made the authorities consider moving to a new city less prone to seismic activity. City residents strongly opposed the move, and even took to the Royal Palace in protest; in the end, the city did not move, but the number of elements in the Army Battalion to safeguard the order was considerable. The damage to the palace was repaired by Diego de Porres, who finished repairs in 1720; although there are indications that there were more jobs done by Porres until 1736. In 1773, the Santa Marta earthquakes destroyed much of the town, which led to the third change in location for the city. The
Spanish Crown The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...
ordered, in 1776, the removal of the capital to a safer location, the Valley of the Shrine, where
Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...
, the modern capital of Guatemala, now stands. This new city did not retain its old name and was christened Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción (New Guatemala of the Assumption), and its patron saint is Our Lady of the Assumption. The badly damaged city of Santiago de los Caballeros was ordered abandoned, although not everyone left, and was thereafter referred to as la Antigua Guatemala (the Old Guatemala).


Eruption of 3 June 2018

Fuego's most recent period of activity began in 1999 and continues to the present day. This period consists of persistent low-level eruptive activity interspersed with occasional violent explosive "paroxysmal" eruptions. Paroxysmal eruptions (or 'paroxysms') produce a sustained eruptive plume from which ash falls on communities within 20 km of the volcano, lava flows reaching 1–2 km from the summit, and occasional pyroclastic density currents. The largest eruption of Fuego in its current period of activity happened on 3 June 2018, also the most powerful eruption of the volcano since 1974. Fuego generated large pyroclastic flows that gradually filled its drainage ravines (known locally as "barrancas"). The greatest impacts were on the east side of Fuego, where pyroclastic flows filled and eventually overcame the capacity of the Las Lajas ravine to descend on the nearby communities of San Miguel Los Lotes and El Rodeo in Escuintla and the private golf resort of La Reunión in Sacatepéquez. The flows that descended on Los Lotes buried the town in pyroclastic material and killed many of the residents, who had received limited warnings to evacuate. On 5 June,
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
reported that at least 99 people are dead and nearly 200 others were unaccounted for following the eruption. Ash fall extended as far as the capital,
Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...
forcing the closure of
La Aurora International Airport La Aurora International Airport (, ) serves Guatemala City, Guatemala. It is located south of Guatemala City's center and from Antigua Guatemala. It is administered by the General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics (Guatemala), General Directora ...
. The military assisted in clearing ash off the runway. Rescue attempts were seriously hampered as routes into the affected regions were seriously damaged by the pyroclastic flows.


See also

* List of volcanoes in Guatemala * List of volcanic eruptions by death toll


References


Bibliography

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External links


Map to Volcano

Global Volcanism Program

YouTube Video of the eruption on 3 June 2018 (Archived)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuego Volcan de Fuego Sierra Madre de Chiapas Stratovolcanoes of Guatemala Subduction volcanoes Active volcanoes Volcan de Fuego Volcan de Fuego VEI-4 volcanoes North American 3000 m summits