Aside from the devastatingly explosive capacity of a volcano, there are other dangers that can unfold:
Aside from the devastatingly explosive capacity of a volcano, there are other dangers that can unfold:
Irazu Irruption, 1960
Fire and brimstone are not the volcanoes only weapons, others include hazards from the volcanic ash is a real danger.
Volcanic Ash
Not to be confused with its counterpart, ash formed when wood burns, volcanic ash is a fine mixture of rock and sharp, tiny broken shards of volcanic glass; created when gasses in the Magma expand and explode above the crater.
Volcano Phreatic Eruption
Mud on road following phreatic eruption
With little warning, a volcano will deliver a thunderous ‘boom’; a minor explosion from its vent or a fumarole; This catapults a shower of small stones, sand, and the pungent smell of sulphur into the air.
Don’t worry; this is just a phreatic eruption. They occurs when a volcano blows-off-a-little-steam. In Costa Rica this will not be accompanied by fiery lava.
The dangers of a volcano in Costa Rica and anywhere can, none-the-less be catastrophic. Eruptions with molten lava, airborne boulders, ash, poisonous gases, can cause water contamination killing of people and animals up to thousands of miles away.