Volcano erupts in Goma, DRC
Mount Nyiragongo, which lies some 10 kilometres
(six miles) north of Goma, erupted at 5.00 am
Thursday 17 January and the lava began its
destructive course towards the town of Goma
destroying villages on its way. Large parts of
Goma, a city of 400,000, were reported on fire, as
lava flowed. It cut a swathe 60 metres wide
through the centre of the city and the ensuing fires
burned down buildings up to 40 metres on either
side. No accurate information on casualties is
available at this stage. The compounds of the
World Health Organization, Save the Children,
and other non-governmental organizations were
destroyed.
It was the first eruption of Mount Nyiragongo
since 1977, when lava flows killed almost 2,000
people in less than half an hour.
The volcano, situated in Democratic Republic of
Congo near the border with Rwanda, is known as
one of Africa's most active volcanoes. The last
activity started in June 1994. On 4 January 2002,
an earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale
struck the area near the volcano.
The lava poured down the slopes through the town
and into Lake Kivu that straddles the RwandaCongo border.
A large crowd began leaving in late afternoon. Up
to two-thirds of Goma's population fled to the
town of Gisenyi, across the Rwandan border. It is
estimated that between 350-500,000 people had
been displaced and that a third of the city was on
fire.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian community in Goma
met to establish a core team who would stay
behind in case of further deterioration of the
situation, UN staff was evacuated and a skeleton
team was left behind initially.
In Kigali and in Kinshasa the UN agencies met on
urgent basis and from Kigali an interagency
mission arrived to Ginsenyi to assess the situation
and the needs. The WHO representative in
Rwanda, Dr Ousmane Diouf, participated in this
mission along with a member of the WHO antenna
of Goma. The assessment mission will be
reinforced tomorrow with an epidemiologist and a
water and sanitation engineer.
Another team from Kinshasa was also getting
ready. Humanitarian agencies were also preparing
to send an aid convoy to Gisenyi and Goma to
provide the displaced with relief items.
An UNDAC (United Nations Disaster Assessment
and Coordination) Team will be sent.
More information will be posted as soon as the
preliminary assessment results are obtained.
Links:
(Photo credits to: Michel Gaboullet, European Commission)
The resulting lava flows from the eruption are
coming not from its summit but from cracks on
three of its flanks, producing three molten rivers.
One of these rivers later split into two fingers, one
heading towards the airport and the other towards
northern residential areas.
OCHA situation report 1
OCHA situation report 2
OCHA situation report 3
Pan American Health Organization
For information on health consequences of
volcano eruptions:
EHA Technical Hazard Sheet for Volcanic
eruptions