U N I T E D N A T I O N S
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)

DRC: Volcanic ash threatens animals

NAIROBI, 29 July (IRIN) - A large plume of ash over Mount Nyimuragira, which erupted on Thursday, poses no immediate danger to man, but may hurt animals in the Masisi area, west of the volcano, Dario Tedesco, the resident volcanologist of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said on Sunday.

Reporting on the activity of Nyimuragira and the nearby Mount Nyiragongo, he said Nyiamuragira's eruptions were continuing to produce "huge quantities" of ash, which was being blown in a westerly direction. These ashes contained "extremely sharp" glassy needles and other particles, often eaten by cows and other animals, he said, and were responsible for stomach haemorrhage leading to death.

He also warned that harvests might be in endangered in "all regions" in the path of ash clouds, and by local acid rain. However, he said there were no reports of danger to the quality of water in the area. But villagers living downwind of the direction of the plumb could suffer eye irritations due to halogens and sulphur, and particularly fluorine. Others might suffer breathing problems associated with the heavy ash emissions.

Scientists said there were gas discharges and "large amounts" of magma close to the nearby Mount Nyiragongo, which last erupted on 17 January, causing extensive damage to the lakeside town of Goma. That eruption caused thousands of people to flee, some to neighbouring Rwanda.

[ENDS]

[This Item is Delivered to the "Africa-English" Service of the UN's IRIN
humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views
of the United Nations. For further information, free subscriptions, or
to change your keywords, contact e-mail: [email protected] [2] or Web:
http://www.irinnews.org [3] . If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post
this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Reposting by commercial
sites requires written IRIN permission.]

Copyright (c) UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2002