One of Alaska’s most active volcanoes has emitted a 37,000ft (11,300-metre) ash cloud that has grounded flights, affecting thousands of travelers and cutting off remote communities in the west and north.
Pavlof volcano erupted on Sunday afternoon but strong winds on Monday pushed the cloud higher and into the heart of the state until it stretched over more than 400 miles (650km).
“It’s right in the wheelhouse of a lot of flights crisscrossing Alaska,” said geologist Chris Waythomas, of the US Geological Survey (USGS), part of the Alaska Volcano Observatory, along with the University of Alaska and the state Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys.
Seattle-based Alaska Airlines has canceled 41 flights involving six cities in the state, including all flights to and from Fairbanks. The airline said the canceled flights affected 3,300 passengers.
Flights to Barrow, Bethel, Kotzebue, Nome and Deadhorse also are canceled. The airline said it would resume its 54 regularly scheduled flights on Tuesday if conditions improved.
Pavlof volcano is 8,261 feet (2,500m) high and sits 625 miles (1,000km) south-west of Anchorage on the Alaska peninsula, the finger of land that sticks out from mainland Alaska toward the Aleutian islands.
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