The Blue Lagoon and Svartsengi Power plant evacuated
The Blue Lagoon evacuation went well when they got notice of a pending eruption. mbl.is/Eggert Jóhannesson
About 30 people, both contractors and production teams, were working at the HS Orka power plant in Svartsengi when an invitation from the Civil Protection Service to evacuate arrived at 11.05. Ten minutes later, all of them had left the plant.
This is what Tómas Sigurðsson, CEO of HS Orka, says.
The pressure changes in the borehole of the power plant were observed on the meters, as has happened before when magma runs from the Svartsengi system.
According to Sigurðsson, the pressure change is similar to the previous magma runs. He notes, however, that changes in pressure have been observed on measurements before, although there was no magma run.
It took only ten minutes to evacuate HS Orka when they received notice about a pending eruption at 11:05 am. mbl.is/Sigurður Bogi
Evacuation in the Blue Lagoon took half an hour
The Blue Lagoon completed evacuating all its premises at 11.40 am this morning after receiving information about an imminent eruption.
Around 700 to 800 people, both guests and employees, were in the area when the evacuation began at 11 am.
This is what Helga Árnadóttir, Director of Sales, Operations and Services at Blue Lagoon, says when asked.
“The guests showed support and understanding, and the employees were as before very professional and worked hard on the evacuation,” she says.
The Blue Lagoon’s operations have thus been closed and Árnadóttir adds that the situation will be closely monitored.
