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Earthquakes Around Etna Cause for Worry
Aired October 30, 2002 - 14:14 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Hundreds of people are homeless and farmers are calling it a catastrophe. What are we talking about? Well, they're living in the shadow of Europe's largest volcano, which has been erupting since Sunday.
CNN's Chris Burns is also there and he brings us in for a closer look at what has been a remarkable phenomenon -- Chris.
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Martin. It's been a very anxious day today, the day after there were earthquakes. This volcano has been erupting at 16 points, 16 craters around. One of them is over my shoulder right now.
But it's erupting all over the place on top of this volcano. And that is what's got a lot of people concerned is, could it widen, could it get worse? Up to now, the last 24 hours, volcanologists are saying that it's actually toned down a bit.
But with the two -- the four earthquakes from yesterday, over four points on the Richter Scale, each one, the officials are not taking any chances. They say that it could herald a new set of eruptions. And that is why they declared a state of emergency.
They're handing out hundreds of tents to people who were left homeless. More than 1,000 in one town alone, from the earthquakes yesterday. And they're also handing out tens of thousands of masks, to protect people from all of the soot and dust that is coming down from that eruption.
Now, at the same time, there are tanker planes that are dumping tens of thousands of gallons of water along the fires here in the mountains, that have been set off by the eruptions. A couple of ski resorts have been damaged or destroyed by the eruptions.
And aftershocks continuing to fray nerves. I just felt one a few minutes ago when I was working in the hotel room. So they are continuing to get people concerned.
We talked to one couple in a town where they slept in their truck after their home was shaken, just in a shambles today. Their son had slept in his car. People like that, they're very concerned.
At the same time, they say they don't want to go anywhere else. They want to rebuild, they want to stay. Hard to believe -- Marty.
SAVIDGE: It is hard to believe, but they do live there. Chris Burns, thank you very much for the update.
Aired October 30, 2002 - 14:14 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Hundreds of people are homeless and farmers are calling it a catastrophe. What are we talking about? Well, they're living in the shadow of Europe's largest volcano, which has been erupting since Sunday.
CNN's Chris Burns is also there and he brings us in for a closer look at what has been a remarkable phenomenon -- Chris.
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Martin. It's been a very anxious day today, the day after there were earthquakes. This volcano has been erupting at 16 points, 16 craters around. One of them is over my shoulder right now.
But it's erupting all over the place on top of this volcano. And that is what's got a lot of people concerned is, could it widen, could it get worse? Up to now, the last 24 hours, volcanologists are saying that it's actually toned down a bit.
But with the two -- the four earthquakes from yesterday, over four points on the Richter Scale, each one, the officials are not taking any chances. They say that it could herald a new set of eruptions. And that is why they declared a state of emergency.
They're handing out hundreds of tents to people who were left homeless. More than 1,000 in one town alone, from the earthquakes yesterday. And they're also handing out tens of thousands of masks, to protect people from all of the soot and dust that is coming down from that eruption.
Now, at the same time, there are tanker planes that are dumping tens of thousands of gallons of water along the fires here in the mountains, that have been set off by the eruptions. A couple of ski resorts have been damaged or destroyed by the eruptions.
And aftershocks continuing to fray nerves. I just felt one a few minutes ago when I was working in the hotel room. So they are continuing to get people concerned.
We talked to one couple in a town where they slept in their truck after their home was shaken, just in a shambles today. Their son had slept in his car. People like that, they're very concerned.
At the same time, they say they don't want to go anywhere else. They want to rebuild, they want to stay. Hard to believe -- Marty.
SAVIDGE: It is hard to believe, but they do live there. Chris Burns, thank you very much for the update.
