Thursday, 19th December, 2024: Today the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO) seismic network recorded a brief but intense swarm of Volcano-Tectonic (VT) earthquakes which started at 10:20 a.m. and lasted approximately 90 minutes.
93 VT events were recorded in the swarm, the two largest having magnitudes of 3.3. The VTs were located at depths of 2-3 kilometres beneath the dome, similar to almost all VT events during the current pause.
This swarm was probably the most intense seen since the pause began on 11 February 2010. It is comparable to a VT swarm on 23 March 2012, which lasted almost three hours and was accompanied by ash venting.
That swarm contained fewer VTs (54) than today’s but its largest VT had a magnitude of 3.6. There was no ash venting associated with today’s VT swarm and there have been no changes in fumarole or rockfall activity.
The observed activity prompted a recommendation from MVO to the authorities to temporarily suspend activities in Zone V.
The activity was confirmed to have returned to background levels by about 12:40. This was communicated to the authorities who subsequently restored access to Zone V.
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