A huge cloud of ash belches from the Chaiten volcano, some 1,300 km south of Santiago, as seen from Chaiten, a town where only animals are left after authorities issued a maximum alert and ordered the evacuation of the surrounding area on May 6, 2008. An evacuation of Chaiten in southern Chile had been underway since May 2, after the volcano began its activity for the first time in recent memory, covering the town and surroundings deep in ash.
In this photo released by Los Lagos regional government, taken from Isla Quinchao, southern Chile, a cloud of smoke produced by intensified eruption of the Chaiten volcano is seen Tuesday May 6, 2008. The eruption spewed incandescent material and blated ash some 20 miles (30 kilometers) into the Andean sky, forcing authorities to a complete evacuation of the area including the nearby town of Chaiten.
A cloud of smoke and ashes produced by intensified eruption of the Chaiten volcano are seen in Chaiten, Chile,Tuesday, May 6, 2008. The eruption spewed incandescent material and blated ash some 20 miles (30 kilometers) into the Andean sky, forcing authorities to a complete evacuation of the area including the nearby town of Chaiten.
A cloud of smoke and ashes produced by intensified eruption of the Chaiten volcano are seen over Chaiten, Chile, Wednesday, May 7, 2008. The Chaiten volcano poured out gas and ash for a sixth day on Wednesday as Chilean President Michelle Bachelet promised support for thousands of people forced to flee their homes.
A resident points at a cloud of smoke and ashes produced by intensified eruption of the Chaiten volcano over Chaiten on Tuesday, May 6, 2008, in southern Chile. The eruption spewed incandescent material and blated ash some 20 miles (30 kilometers) into the Andean sky, forcing authorities to a complete evacuation of the area.
A cloud of smoke and ashes produced by intensified eruption of the Chaiten volcano are seen over Chaiten on Tuesday, May 6, 2008, in southern Chile. The eruption spewed incandescent material and blated ash some 20 miles (30 kilometers) into the Andean sky, forcing authorities to a complete evacuation of the area.
A cloud of smoke and ashes produced by intensified eruption of the Chaiten volcano are seen over Chaiten on Tuesday, May 6, 2008, in southern Chile. The eruption spewed incandescent material and blated ash some 20 miles (30 kilometers) into the Andean sky, forcing authorities to a complete evacuation of the area.
A huge cloud of ash spewed from the Chaiten volcano, some 1,300 km south of Santiago, is seen from Chaiten, a town where only animals are left after authorities issued a maximum alert and ordered the evacuation of the surrounding area on May 6, 2008। An evacuation of Chaiten in southern Chile had been underway since May 2, after the volcano began erupting for the first time in recent memory, covering the town and surroundings deep in ash.
Police wearing a protecting facial masks walk amid a landscape covered in ash near Futaleufu, some 170 kilometres from Chaiten, southern Chile on May 7, 2008. A thick cloud of ash from the erupting Chaiten volcano spread across a swathe of South America May 7, 2008 prompting fears of a health crisis. The enormous slow-moving plume was expected to soon reach Buenos Aires, where about eight million people live in the Argentine capital and its surroundings, spreading airborne ash particles which health officials warned could be highly dangerous to inhale. Thousands of Chileans have already fled their homes after the volcano, located 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) south of Santiago near Chile's border with Argentina, erupted violently May 6, 2008, spewing ash and lava over its surroundings.
Picture taken in Chaiten, a town 1,300 km south of Santiago, where only animals are left after authorities issued a maximum alert and order the evacuation of the area surrounding the Chaiten volcano which erupted with lava and ash on May 6, 2008. An evacuation of Chaiten in southern Chile had been underway since Friday, after the volcano began erupting for the first time in recent memory, covering the town's buildings and streets deep in ash.
A huge cloud of ash spewed from the Chaiten volcano, some 1,300 km south of Santiago is seen from Chaiten, a town where only animals are left after authorities issued a maximum alert and order the evacuation of the area surrounding the volcano which erupted with lava and ash on May 6, 2008. An evacuation of Chaiten in southern Chile had been underway since Friday, after the volcano began erupting for the first time in recent memory, covering the town's buildings and streets deep in ash.
Picture taken in Chaiten, a town 1,300 km south of Santiago, where only animals are left after authorities issued a maximum alert and order the evacuation of the area surrounding the Chaiten volcano which erupted with lava and ash on May 6, 2008. An evacuation of Chaiten in southern Chile had been underway since Friday, after the volcano began erupting for the first time in recent memory, covering the town's buildings and streets deep in ash.
