Rumbles were reported near the mountain Herðubreið in Northeast Iceland yesterday morning. According to park rangers at Herðubreiðarlindir, a nearby oasis, the disturbance lasted about 30 seconds. The cause is yet to be determined, visir.is reports.
Search and rescue members were dispatched to look for a group of French tourists known to be in the area. They were found at the foot of the mountain and claimed to have witnessed a large avalanche on the northern side of Herðubreið. The rescue team did not find any evidence of an avalanche, nor of landslides, akin to those that occurred in the nearby crater lake Öskjuvatn about two weeks ago.
As reported, a roughly one-kilometer (0.6-mile) wide piece of land fell from a mountain near Askja stratovolcano. Several 50-meter (164-feet) tidal waves crashed on the rocks around the lake in Askja. According to estimates, 50 to 60 million cubic meters (1,766-2,118 cubic feet) of land fell down the mountain.
Trails near the lake have been closed off.
Tómas Jóhannesson, speaking on behalf of the Icelandic Met Office, told visir.is that the cause of the disturbance at Herðubreið is yet to be determined. Experts will be in the area today investigating possible causes.
