St Vincent was hit by another explosive event from La Soufrière volcano early on Sunday (April 11), which triggered power cuts and water outages in some areas, while ash clouds began to blanket parts of the island of Barbados.

The National Emergency Management Organisation (NEMO), said there was a huge power outage after another explosive event at the volcano.

For their part, the St Vincent Electricity Services assured that restoration operations continue.

“We at St Vincent Electricity Services Limited continue work to restore power following an island-wide outage shortly after twelve this morning. Power has been restored to most of our customers and our teams have been dispatched to continue restoration work. Please be reminded that the safety of our employees and the public is priority. Therefore, in all instances work will only be done if the environment is safe. We encourage all to remain calm and safe during these challenging times,” the agency said in a statement.

However, by noon local time, power had been restored, residents said.

NEMO, in an update on Twitter, also confirmed pyroclastic flows and warned of danger, ruin and perilous conditions for communities closest to La Soufrière.

“Pyroclastic flows at La Soufrière [signal] possible destruction and devastation of communities close to volcano. Current activity pattern similar to that of 1902 eruption. According to Professor Richie Richardson, [flows] likely to cause more damage and destruction,” NEMO indicated.

Following months of effusive (oozing) activity, the volcano erupted on Friday, spewing dark clouds of ash some 10 kilometres into the air and prompting an evacuation of thousands of people on the island.

The volcano has continued to rumble and vent ash since then.

The eruption and resulting ashfall creates a new problem for Vincentians, as the toxins threaten the quality of potable water. At least one collection and distribution centre is severely affected by volcanic ash.

The Central Water and Sewerage Authority (CWSA) showed the murky, grey waters of Dalaway intake. The CWSA manages three of its major sources — Montreal, Majorca and Dalaway — which together supply 70 per cent of all potable water in St Vincent.

The University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre (UWI-SRC) cautioned that the ongoing events at La Soufrière are likely to continue.

“Explosions and accompanying ashfall, of similar or larger magnitude, are likely to continue to occur over the next few days,” the SRC updated on Twitter.

Evacuations continue for those still exposed in the disastrous red zone, with NEMO urging once-reluctant residents to get to the coastal town of Owia.

“It’s [past] the hour to get out, but we will still get you out, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves to residents still in Red Zone. Get to Owia if you can and the Coastguard will try to get you out,” NEMO said.

St Vincent and the Grenadines, which has a population of just over 100,000, has not experienced volcanic activity since 1979 when an eruption created approximately $100 million in damages. An eruption by La Soufrière in 1902 killed more than 1,000 people.