PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, February 18 (RIA Novosti) - A lava flow from the erupting Plosky Tolbachik volcano in Russia’s Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula has stopped less than three km away from a research site, the Kamchatka Volcano Observatory said on Monday.
“The lava flow that was approaching the Tolud research site has ceased its movement. It didn’t reach the base due to ground profile,” the observatory said in a statement.
During the eruption, which began on November 27, two fissures formed on the southern slope of the volcano. Lava from the upper fissure covered more than six km, while the flow effusing from the lower fissure covered more than 20 km.
Yaroslav Muravyov, a scientist based at the Tolud volcanologists' research site next to the volcano, said last Wednesday that the lava flow was threatening the camp, but the Emergencies Ministry dismissed the report the following day.
The 3,085-meter Plosky Tolbachik volcano, located 343 kilometers (217 miles) from the region's capital of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, began erupting on November 27 for the first time in 36 years.
Kamchatka is one of the most volcanically-active areas in the world according to UNESCO, with 29 active volcanos.
