Ecuador volcano eruption forces thousands from homes

QUITO, Ecuador - Ecuador's Tungurahua volcano spewed molten rock on Thursday that enveloped nearby houses, leaving one man dead, another person missing and forcing thousands from their homes.

Massive clouds of ash descended on villagers fleeing the area with their belongings strapped to their backs and their livestock trailing behind. Some wore buckets over their heads for protection.

"At the moment we know of one dead, one missing and 12 people injured who are now out of danger," Roberto Rodriguez, a civil defence official, said in Quito. "About 5000 people have been evacuated."

Rescuers searched for the missing person while a local police chief said a handful of residences had been swallowed up by the molten rock, which also blocked the nearby Chambo and Puela rivers.

The man died of burns while trying to rescue a television set from his shack that was engulfed in flames, the police chief said.

Tungurahua, which means "throat of fire" in native Quichua and is located 130km south of the capital city Quito, was increasingly active in July, prompting hundreds of people to flee the area.

"This is a lot worse than the last time," said Mauro Rodriguez, the civil defence chief for Tungurahua province. "There is ash everywhere and people are terrified in the shelters."

More explosions likely

Scientists with the National Geophysics Institute said the volcano's activity had abruptly stopped on Thursday morning. But more explosions could be on the way.

"It's very likely that we will continue to see explosions in coming days or weeks," said Santiago Arellano, a scientist with the institute staying near the site. "But I don't think we will have a big, massive explosion that will tear everything apart."

He said the explosions are part of the volcano's eruption process that started in 1999 after decades of inactivity.

One of the country's 31 active volcanoes, the Tungurahua has covered dozens of villages and green pastures with gray ash.

President Alfredo Palacio flew to the area to talk to local officials and evaluate the damage in villages and crops.

Electricity flow to the oil-rich provinces of Sucumbios, Napo and Pastaza was shut down because transmission lines were affected by the Tungurahua's ash and flows of molten rock.

Ecuador's key oil industry was not disrupted by the blackouts, a state oil company official told Reuters.

The country's two main international airports in Quito and the port city of Guayaquil remain open, but some airlines have delayed flights, aviation officials said.

During the early hours of Thursday, residents of the tourist town of Banos, with a population of around 17,000, left their homes, but the city mayor told Reuters most have already returned to the town on the south side of the volcano's crater.

- REUTERS