Etna 2002 -2003 volcano eruption

On 27 th and 28 th October night, violent earthquakes were felt in the Rif . Sapienza area and in the zone around Piano Provenzano.
 

Etna from Adrano during 2002 eruption

After a few hours various craters opened between 2700 and 2200m.s.l.m.long the rift on the western side of the volcano, with others in the Monte Frument Supino area at about 2700mt. on the southern side, while at the same time the summit craters began an intense phreatic activity. This is how Etna began her majestic biradiale eruption. From the first day onwards, the lava flow invaded Piano Provenzana destroying the few structures that had survived the violent seismic shakes and advanced through the woods of Ragabo in the direction of central inhabited area of Linguaglossa. While the craters on the southern side began violent explosions that introduced into the atmosphere an enormous quantity of ash.

On 29 th October on the fracture towards valley along the North-east rift, twelve craters approximately between 2000-1800mt. from which emitted a Strombolian type intensive explosive activity. The following day earthquake of 3-4 on the Richter scale, seriously damaged many villages in the eastern area of Etna (Santa Venerina, Bongiardo, Guardia Mangano etc.). The same eruptive pattern happened in 1887, also then there were two different eruptive patterns (one the southern side and the other along the rift from north to east) with violent earthquakes in the eastern sector. After seven days from the beginning the eruptive phenomenon along the north-east rift stopped.

The craters on the southern side had a different story in that they were the site of an intense piroclastic activity: vigorous columns of volcanic ash rose for kilometres into the atmosphere, often the rapidity of the volcanic ash emitted overtook the sound that was created by the sound shocks (during the explosions, before feeling the movement of air and after you hear the boom). The ash fall arrived as far as Tripoli causing many problems to the population who live on the slopes of Etna: the airport was closed for a few weeks, vehicles with two wheels were forbidden to circulate. Also agriculture was damaged by abrasions caused by falling ash. Already after about 10 days the pulsating explosive activity had built a waste lava cone one hundred meters high, at the base of which effusive craters fed the lava flow that went towards the Rif . Sapienza area and others that flowed in a in a south-eastern direction towards contrada “Carpentieri”. Diverse explosive activities that was effusive and not very regular; the emission rate was low and changeable (nt more than 5mt. and 3mt. per second), the lava flow advanced towards valley until the sourced that fed it allowed. When this diminished their flow finished, after which a new increased in the emission rate from the effusive craters gave origin to a new lava flow that stratified over the previous lava giving origin to a lava field with many branches, not very large longwise and quite thick. The lava flow caused grave damage to the tourist structures at the already tormented area around Rifugio Sapienza, caused also the explosion of a water tank (idro-explosion) that caused 30 people to be injured.

In the last days of November a new explosive crater opened above the previous ones, this build another piroclastic cone and buried the whole of the “Torre del Filosofo” shelter.

t the end of the month of December, the intense piroclastic activity ceased, leaving in its place irregular explosions due to the cave-in of material inside the conduit that was again expelled when the internal gas pression overcame the resistance of obstructions. The eruptive phenomenon continued among high and low emissions until it finished on 29 th January 2003.

Copyright © Roberto Caudullo, "www.etnavolcano.info"

page last modified on 06 august 2005.