INSIVUMEH noted in special reports that during 20-22 April explosions from Fuego generated ash plumes that rose 750 m above the crater and drifted 10-12 km NW, W, SW, and S. Ashfall was reported in villages downwind, including Panimaché (8 km SW), Morelia (9 km SW), and Santa Sofía (12 km SW). Explosions were audible up to 30 km away, and shock waves detected more than 15 km away vibrated houses in Panimaché, Morelia, Santa Sofía, and other areas. Avalanches of blocks reached vegetated areas.

Geological Summary. Volcán Fuego, one of Central America's most active volcanoes, is also one of three large stratovolcanoes overlooking Guatemala's former capital, Antigua. The scarp of an older edifice, Meseta, lies between Fuego and Acatenango to the north. Construction of Meseta dates back to about 230,000 years and continued until the late Pleistocene or early Holocene. Collapse of Meseta may have produced the massive Escuintla debris-avalanche deposit, which extends about 50 km onto the Pacific coastal plain. Growth of the modern Fuego volcano followed, continuing the southward migration of volcanism that began at the mostly andesitic Acatenango. Eruptions at Fuego have become more mafic with time, and most historical activity has produced basaltic rocks. Frequent vigorous historical eruptions have been recorded since the onset of the Spanish era in 1524, and have produced major ashfalls, along with occasional pyroclastic flows and lava flows.

Source: Instituto Nacional de Sismologia, Vulcanologia, Meteorologia, e Hidrologia (INSIVUMEH)