After the Chaitén volcano’s rage, tourist activity is recovered

The eruption of Chaitén Volcano in the province of Palena, Chile, caused serious consequences for the populations of the cordilleran region. However, tourist activities, despite irregularities in flight schedules, are already recovering the pace they had before the climate phenomenon.

Chaitén woke up after 7000 years of sleep and its effects were strongly felt in Chile and Argentina as well. The volcano pumped out large quantities of lava and produced dense clouds of ash that, due to the action of southwestern winds, covered the province of Río Negro and also reached areas of the province of La Pampa and Buenos Aires.

The 4,000 inhabitants of El Chaitén, a town located only 10 km (6.2 mi) away from the volcano after which it has been named, in the Chilean territory, had to be evacuated, as ordered by the authorities. The inhabitants of Futaleufú and Palena (nearby locations) voluntarily abandoned their homes, totaling 6,500 evacuated people.

Chile’s President, Mrs. Michelle Bachelet, visited Futaleufú and declared the Chilean region as disaster site.

All over the region, including the Argentine sector, there were problems with the water supply due to the pollution of rivers and streams with volcanic waste. For this reason, water purificationactions had to be implemented in order to supply all homes. On the other hand, the ash cloud damaged the crops.

In Esquel, located 100 km (62.15 mi) away from El Chaitén in the Argentine province of Chubut, an alert status was declared. There were power shortages and school classes were suspended. The City Hall of the town handed out printed flyers encouraging the population to remain in their homes, close the windows, place wet clothes in thresholds, wear chin straps, keep food and water reserves, avoid the accumulation of ashes, and use a wet duster instead of sweeping.   

Even though in the most affected area on the Argentine side (mainly El Chaltén, El Bolsón and, to a lesser extent, Bariloche) there still exist ashes in the air (depending on the direction and strength of the winds), the roads have been opened and most of the tours can already be taken.It should be taken into account that the flights to San Carlos de Bariloche are operating with certain restrictions. On the contrary, the air traffic to Comodoro Rivadavia and Trelew, which had been reduced the days after the eruption, is now normal. 

Tourist activity in the typical destinations of Patagonia, such as Puerto Madryn, El Calafate, and Ushuaia (all of which are far from the area where the worst consequences were felt) has not been affected by the eruption.The main ski resorts operate normally as well.