Guatemala Volcano Creates Calamity

It has been a crazy year for Mother Nature. A volcano in southern Guatemala has erupted, killing one person and covering the capital city with ash as President Alvaro Colom declared the country to be in a “state of calamity.”  —JCL

Tropical storm Agatha isn’t making things any easier for Guatemalans.

Al-Jazeera:

A volcano eruption in southern Guatemala has killed at least one person and left several children missing.

The Pacaya volcano started erupting on Thursday, covering Guatemala City with ash and forcing the closure of the capital’s international airport.

The eruption has also destroyed or damaged hundreds of homes, forcing at least 1,600 people to evacuate, officials have said.

The eruption has prompted Alvaro Colom, the Guatemalan president, to declare a “state of calamity” for the Central American country.

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AP / Moises Castillo

A church is backdropped by smoke from the Pacaya volcano, which is erupting near San Vicente Pacaya, Guatemala.