Gov't extends state of emergency in Alamagan

Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio on Friday extended the declaration of disaster emergency in the CNMI in the wake of the continued threat of major volcanic eruption in Alamagan, an island north of Saipan, which has alarmed officials since July last year.

The extension means that the area remains off-limits to human habitation and that travel to the island is still restricted, except for monitoring activities conducted by authorities.

According to the latest declaration by the governor, volcanic activity and seismic phenomena in Alamagan that prompted the initial emergency status continue to exist nearly six months after it showed signs of possible major eruption.

Residents have since fled the northern island after the government prohibited travels to the area. The latest warning will take effect for the next 30 days and subject to further extension.

However, personnel of the Department of Public Safety, other government officials and those on scientific missions are permitted to travel to the island upon approval by the Emergency Management Office.

DPS, together with EMO and the Office of the Mayor of the Northern Islands, is granted authority to enforce the off-limits ban. They may also seek assistance from federal agencies, like the U.S. Coast Guard, to carry out its duties.

The small volcano showed signs of activities in December 1998 after years of deep slumber, spewing thick black smoke and sulfuric smoke that prompted immediate rescue of dozens of residents on the island, about 159 miles north of Saipan.

The Hawaii Volcanic Observatory has alerted the CNMI government about potential “major eruptions” in Alamagan based on the findings of the U.S.. Geological Survey.

It has also urged installation of monitoring device on the island to provide an early warning system of impending volcanic eruptions. EMO set up the system in a visit last June in which officials also had discovered that steaming from the side of the volcano remains.

A period of six to eight months is needed to make a definite assessment of the situation in Alamagan, which is one of the few inhabited islands in the north.

The last major eruptions in the Northern Marianas, a chain of volcanic rocks and formation in the Western Pacific, occurred in 1982 when a volcano in Pagan exploded after decades of inactivity.