‘Simply dotish’ – Hikers climb erupting La Soufriere
All visits to the La Soufriere volcano on the Caribbean island of St Vincent have been suspended due to explosive eruptions.
La Soufrière Volcano St Vincent
Thrill-seeker Desron Rodriquez Keeps defying orders to stay away from La Soufriere Volcano and ventured to the summit on Sunday 18th April.
The volcano which is currently in an explosive phase had its latest eruption on Sunday 18th April at 4.49 pm, sending ash South and West of the island.
Unlike his last visit to the top in 2020, where he collected rock samples, he passed on the chance to venture into the crater this time.
Rodriquez, also called the “Lava Man” by his fans, was accredited with the alias “ Dotish” on Monday 19 by UWI SRC geologist Richard Robertson.
Robertson is the lead scientist tracking and advising the government on La Soufriere eruptions which went explosive on April 9.
Following his recent visit to La Soufriere, which is erupting explosively, Rodriquez posted a video of himself and another individual.
From the film, one could see the individual multiple times in a kneeling position. Rodriquez could be heard asking the individual. What are you doing? Praying.
Scientist Richard Robertson commenting on Rodriquez YouTube posting said:
“ With your actions, you are putting at risk not only yourself and your entire party for all of the reasons that I have stated multiple times.”
Robertson says he has told Rodriquez personally that what he is doing is quite simply mad.
“This volcano in its current state can erupt explosively without further warning. Anyone on the volcano at the time is at risk of dying horribly from blunt trauma to the body, from excessive burns, and asphyxiation.”
“Anyone at the summit as you were today will certainly be killed if it has one of the kinds of explosions that it had on the very same day that you visited”
Robertson said he is again publicly appealing to Rodriquez to stop putting himself, co-hikers, and potentially the search and rescue team that would come to get him if something happens.
“This is neither brave nor useful but simply dotish”, Robertson said.
“I’m different, I like to experience things for myself, (So) when I am ready to run movie I would not be talking from hearsay”, Rodriquez told Boom Fm in an interview in January.
Rodriguez, in January, also told radio listeners to take the advisories disseminated by the authorities seriously.
On April 16, Geologist Richard Robertson told News784 that the eruption at La Soufriere has not ended; he told this media house in his words, “Far From It”.
“As we have said for some time now the explosions appear to have been getting smaller with the gap between each becoming longer. It was also said that there might come a time in the near future when the explosive activity would end”.
NEMO says eighty-eight shelters with 4042 occupants are now activated, while some five thousand three hundred and ninety-eight persons (5398) are being housed in private shelter.
A total of 1,459 families have been displaced so far. The alert level remains RED.
