Looking at possibilities to cool lava

The idea is to get powerful pumps here in Iceland that could possibly be used to cool lava and divert it from the settlements and infrastructure. A group of experts is expected to arrive in Iceland today that will evaluate whether the pump equipment is useful.

This was stated in the case of Víðir Reynisson, the Director of Civil Protection, at the information meeting on Civil Protection that was this morning at 11 am.

Staying for a few days

“One of the things that has been done recently is to see if it is possible to get powerful pumps that could be used to cool lava to slow it down or to divert it away from the built-up or important infrastructure,” he said at the meeting.

“Today, a group of experts from our civil protection partnership in Europe arrives. They will examine the situation and evaluate whether the equipment we have available is useful for such work. The group includes experts in the field of using pumping equipment, volcanologists and experts in disaster management.”

According to Reynisson, the group will stay in Iceland for a few days and then submit proposals for the next steps.