Guatemala: Nearly 1,000 evacuated after volcanic eruption

In the early hours of Monday morning, nearly 1,000 people were evacuated as a result of the eruption of the Fuego volcano. It is located about 22 miles from Guatemala City.

The eruption has caused the "presence of volcanic ash at a distance of 25 miles in a northwest, west and southwest direction," said a statement from the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (Conred).

An "institutional orange alert" has been declared, and the Executive Secretariat of Conred is in constant communication with territorial authorities, which are within the jurisdiction of the Fuego volcano, to coordinate prevention actions.

"As a preventive measure, about 125 families, 900 people approximately, have begun to be evacuated" from El Porvenir, Conred spokesman Juan Laureano told the media.

Without specifying the number, the official affirmed that there is also a group that has been evacuated from the community of Lajitas.

The evacuated people, some of them in police patrols, have arrived at the municipal hall of Alotenango which will serve as a temporary shelter.

"We have moved people who have recently undergone surgery or who have a medical condition," independent firefighter Cesar Chavez, 50, told AFP.

Fuego volcano is the most active volcano in Central America and its last eruption occurred in May 2023, causing the evacuation of almost 1,200 people.