SANTIAGO, Chile — Chile’s government has issued a red alert and ordered the evacuation of residents living within 25 miles of a rumbling volcano.
Interior Minister Rodrigo Hinzpeter says 97 people living near the Hudson volcano will be evacuated and he is not ruling out the possibility of an eruption.
The Southern Andean Volcano Observatory says seismic activity related to the volcano increased starting early Tuesday night.
The Hudson volcano lies 995 miles south of Chile’s capital, Santiago. It last erupted in August 1991, causing millions in damages to local farms and killing an estimated 1.5 million sheep.
Chile has about 3,000 volcanos, 500 of which are considered geologically active. Precautionary evacuations are not uncommon.
Printed on Thursday, October 27, 2011 as: Rumbling volcano prompts evacuation, red alert in Chile
