Hey Cotopaxi is active again!
In August, Cotopaxi started jetting smoke and ash for the first time in 70 years, leading the country to declare a state of emergency, with the possible evacuation of hundreds of thousands.
Here is what it’s like living nearby in Latacunga, which was destroyed in a mudflow in the last major eruption in the 1870s.
“The city just went crazy,” Mauricio says. “We kicked opened our doors and we took what we could and we just ran. We were not prepared with masks or first aid kits. It was mayhem.”
And sadly, it looks like a lot of people have left the area:
“A fifth of the community has left,” claims Mauricio. “Some forever, some temporarily. The little tourism we had is gone because most people come to see or climb Cotopaxi and the national park is closed. And now because people don’t know what’s going to happen, they’re holding on to their money to wait and see what happens. They’re scared.”
Here is some pre-activity before the eruption this summer
Hey Cotopaxi is active again! Read More »
