Sunday, June 5, 2011

State of emergency remains in Bariloche, schools, public buildings to stay closed

Volcano ash spewed by the Puyehue stopped falling over the city of Bariloche and the Andean region, although local authorities announced that the state of emergency remains in effect. Schools and other public buildings will remain close, while all flights to and from the region remain cancelled.

There will not be any commercial flights from and to Bariloche and Trelew at least until Wednesday, according to the Civil Aviation National Administration. 

Airline companies such as Aerolíneas Argentinas and Austral announced they were suspending all flights to Bariloche, Chapelco and Esquel until next Sunday, and all flights to Trelew, Neuquén and Viedma until Tuesday.

Local authorities assured there is a layer of ash that’s at least 30 centimetres high over the National Route 40 in the area close to Bariloche and Neuquén. Border patrol has discouraged residents from driving in the area.

Earlier, ashes spewed from the Puyehue Chilean volcano finally reached the Argentine Atlantic Coast, after leaving the Andes and Patagonia regions under a thick layer of ashes and stone.

Strong winds headed east pushed the ashes from the volcanic complex over the entire Patagonian territory, after initially covering the towns of San Carlos de Bariloche and Villa La Angostura.

The cities of Puerto Madryn and Trelew, in Chubut, were also affected by the ashes.

After authorities shut down all air traffic in the region yesterday, some twelve flights scheduled to leave from Buenos Aires to Bariloche were cancelled due to the dense ash cloud hovering above the city.