Photos: An impressive volcanic eruption sparked panic in Congo

Volcanic lava from Nyiragongo stopped today before reaching the city of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.. The the inhabitants started to return home despite the fear of a new activity. The volcano, which had erupted Saturday evening, made four villages “directly affected” and “destroyed”. Based on a provisional balance there are 13 deaths.

“The lava stopped near Buhene, on the outskirts of Goma … the city was saved,” said the military governor of the province, General Constant Ndima. “There have been several thefts from shops and an attempted escape of prisoners” from the city jail, but “the situation is under control,” he said.

Meanwhile, military spokesman Major Guillaume Njike Kaiko said 13 people died, “nine of them in accidents during the evacuation of the population, and four in the central prison of Munzenze from where they wanted to escape “.

Nyiragongo volcano, whose slopes dominate Goma and all of Lake Kivu, suddenly became active on Saturday night taking the whole population by surprise, including your authorities. Faced with this fact evacuation was ordered from the city. Yes indeed tens of thousands of people fled to a neighboring border post with Rwanda (south of Goma), and towards the Masisi region. In Rwanda, the authorities organized the reception of the victims in a peaceful and channeled manner.

“Currently, citizens of the Democratic Republic of Congo who fled to Rwanda after the Nyiragongo eruption continue to return to their country,” the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA) said today. On the other hand, one citizen said that “most people have returned home or are about to do so”.

The blackish, unstable lava river, from which flames and strong vapors emanated, engulfed homes outside Goma, leaving twisted and charred iron visible. A local UN official, Diego Zorrilla, reported that four cities were “directly affected” and “destroyed” by volcanic lava, and that this organization will support the local government with humanitarian aid.

In Rome, during his Sunday Angelus, Pope Francis prayed “for the people of the city of Goma, forced to flee by the eruption of the great Nyiragongo volcano “.

Goma, the regional capital of North Kivu, is a conflict-ridden province neighboring Uganda where numerous armed groups abound. It has a population of almost 600 thousand inhabitants. The region is an area of ​​intense volcanic activity, with six volcanoes, including Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira, very close to each other and at 3,470 and 3,058 meters respectively.

Tourists and gorillas “safe and sound” after the volcano eruption

Visitors who were near the crater at the time of the Nyiragongo volcano eruption are “safe and sound,” the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN) reported today via its Twitter account. He did not specify the number of tourists or their nationality. He also reported that “mountain gorillas are not threatened”.

This organization has under its supervision the Virunga National Park, where the volcano is located. This park is the oldest nature reserve in Africa, inaugurated in 1925; it is a sanctuary for the few remaining mountain gorillas. Located on the border with Rwanda and Uganda, this territory covers an area of ​​7,800 km2 in the province of North Kivu, whose capital is Goma.

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