Only those who have received the COVID-19 vaccine will be safe from St. Vincent could evacuate after La Soufriere volcano erupted in the Caribbean on Friday, Ralph Gosalves, the country’s prime minister, told a news conference on Saturday.
The Vincentian prime minister held a press conference with his face visible from tears, explaining that cruise ships voluntarily wanted to transport the islanders to the nearby Caribbean islands for shelter, but that only vaccinations would be granted.
He explained that the cruise ships “do not have enough personnel” to keep people on the ships, but can transport them.
The decision does not appear to be his, but was rather taken by the neighboring islands of Barbados, Grenada, Antigua and St. Lucia, who said they would only accept fully vaccinated refugees.
The island nation is home to about 100,000 people.
Last Thursday, the country began taking precautions and ordered that homes in the northern parts of the island be evacuated due to the possible risk that La Soufriere could erupt.
The volcano has been dormant since 1979, with its last eruption causing about $ 100 million in damages. In 1902, more than 1,000 people were killed by an eruption.
The Friday eruption caused ash and smoke, plunging the neighboring area into darkness and wiping out the bright morning sun, a Reuters witness said.
Smaller explosions continued throughout the day, Erouscilla Joseph, director of the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Center, told Reuters.
“This is just the beginning,” she said.
The eruption column is estimated to be 10 km (6 miles) high, the seismic research center said. Asval can the Grenadines, Barbados, St. Lucia and Grenada influenced.
Local media have also reported in recent days that the activity from Mount Pelee on the island of Martinique, north of St. Vincent, on the other side of St. Lucia, raised.