Activity at the volcano has been at a higher level overnight. A swarm of earthquakes which began at about 1:20 am this morning has continued to the end of the reporting period. The swarm consisted of irregularly spaced volcano-tectonic and hybrid events up until about 3:40am. The events became more regularly spaced after this period and consisted only of hybrid events which increased to a frequency of about one per minute at the end of the period. Hybrid earthquake swarms have in the past been associated with periods of increased dome growth. A few small to moderate sized rockfall signals and isolated volcano-tectonic earthquakes have been recorded throughout the night.
The visibility is poor early today with low cloud cover obscuring the summit of the volcano. A few small ash clouds from early morning rockfalls were observed from Salem and the Observatory at about during the early dawn.
Despite the increase in activity experienced overnight scientists are confident that current volcanic risk map is still applicable and that no life threatening events would occur in occupied areas in the near future. However, the renewed hybrid activity demonstrates that the volcano is still very active and potentially dangerous and the activity could escalate at any time. The eastern face of the dome is steep, and further pyroclastic flows are likely. People entering zone C must remain alert, listen to Radio Montserrat and be ready to leave at short notice. Only essential visits should be made. The ash levels in Plymouth are hazardous, and it is very important to wear an ash mask when there is ash in the air.