Day 25 Aug 05 2014 ~ Heimaey Iceland

Heimaey is the largest island (5.2 sq. miles) in the Vestmannaeyjar cluster, approximately 4 nautical miles off the south coast of Iceland. It is the only island in Vestmannaeyjar that is populated, and there are around 4,500 inhabitants. Vestmannaeyjar is home to around 4,500 people, and eight million puffins every summer. Many millions of other birds migrate there for breeding and feeding.
Eldfell (“fire mountain” in Icelandic) is a volcano on the island of Heimaey. In January of 1973, an eruption began along a 1.5 mile long fissure not far from the center of the town of Vestmannaeyjar. The fissure extended across the entire island, producing a spectacular curtain of fire. Nearly all of the island’s 5,300 residents were evacuated to the mainland. This eruption is famous because the Icelanders sprayed sea water on the lava to slow and stop its movement. It was the largest effort ever exerted to control volcanic activity.