It will take some time to prepare the actions

At the same time that a volcanic eruption is expected in the vicinity of Grindavík at any moment, the Grindavík Committee has submitted an action plan for construction worth 470 million ISK. Of this, Grindavíkurbær will pay 30 million, while the state will pay 440 million.

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Earthquakes are increasing: Two scenarios most likely

The largest part of the plan is about the construction of the town's infrastructure, which includes, among other things, road repairs, the raising of sea defenses, and fences. Gunnar Einarsson, who sits on the Grindavíkur committee, says preparations have already begun.

Asked if the construction will be started despite the impending eruption, he says: "We are starting some of this, for example, we are starting to fence off an area and we are preparing operations, and it will take some time. [...] But of course people don't take action there if the risk assessment is such that it is not defensible."

Repeat action

Þorvaldur Þórðarsson, professor of volcanology, believes that it is likely that an eruption will occur in the vicinity of the town, but he thinks it unlikely that the eruption will occur inside of the town of Grindavík.

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Warn about an eruption in the next few days

"One now feels most likely that the tank will go off in the next few days, and if it does, it would just be repeat action." Then we will have an eruption similar to the one that started at the end of May, and then the progress will be very similar. It may start with some noise, but it quickly decreases," Þórðarson says.

He adds that if that becomes the case and soon after magma still continues to accumulate in the magma chamber under Svartsengi, the eruption pattern that has been going on may continue for a few more months.