Houses set alight as lava reaches Icelandic town

Houses 1_____ caught fire in the fishing town of Grindavík in south-west Iceland after a volcano erupted for the second time in less than a month.

Two fissures formed near the town on Sunday after an increase in seismic activity 2_____ prompted authorities to evacuate the community the day before. A first eruption began at 8am when a crack opened in the ground about 450 metres 3_____ the town. Protective barriers of earth and rock pushed lava from the first fissure away from the town. 4_____, a second crack then opened around midday on the edge of town, measuring around 100 metres by the evening, with that lava engulfing the homes.

At least three houses 5_____ engulfed by fire, live images from TV broadcaster RUV showed. Jets of glowing orange lava flowed out and a huge smoke cloud rose against the dark sky. “In a little village like this one, we’re 6_____ a family, we all know each other as family – it’s tragic seeing 7_____” one local resident, Sveinn Ari Gudjonsson, told Agence France-Presse. “It’s unreal, it’s like watching a film,” added the 55-year-old, who works in the fishing industry.

Iceland’s positioning 8_____ the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates, which move in opposite directions, make it a seismic and volcanic hotspot.

Adapted from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/14/volcano-erupts-near-reykjavik-forcing-evacuation-of-residents