Authorities in Italy are planning for a mass evacuation of tens of thousands of people living around Campi Flegrei, the supervolcano sitting underneath the southern Italian city of Naples after its seismic activity increased in the past few days.
According to the Italian government, the new measures, which include a scheme to check on the strength of buildings in the area after months of repeated earthquakes, would be discussed at a cabinet meeting Thursday (October 5), The Guardian reported.
The projected active crater of Campi Flegrei is located to the west of Naples and has been surrounded by towns and villages, particularly Pozzuoli, Agnano, and Bacoli. The three villages are in the immediate vicinity of the volcano and have a combined population of more than 500,000.
Italian civil defense minister Sebastiano Musumeci said the planned evacuations would only be triggered in the case of "extreme necessity."
The Meloni cabinet was also expected to direct more resources to local civil protection agencies to ensure they could swiftly intervene in case of emergency and to fund a communication campaign to raise public awareness, he added.
Local media reported that several hospitals in the area would start evacuation tests from Friday (October 6) to make sure they were ready to face stronger quakes or eruptions.
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Naples to Suffer the Fate of Pompeii?
The area of Naples has been jolted by more than 1,100 earthquakes in the past month alone, including a 4.0 magnitude tremor Monday (October 2) and a 4.2 one last week. The two quakes alone were the strongest the area experienced in the past four decades.
Scientists alleged that Campi Flegrei - whose caldera is composed of 24 craters - shares a magma chamber with the more popular volcano Vesuvius which became notorious for destroying the ancient Roman city of Pompeii in 79 AD.
They added that the increased seismic activity is probably linked to a phenomenon known as bradyseism, when the earth rises or falls, depending on the cycle, caused by the filling or emptying of underground magma chambers.
There is no imminent threat of an eruption, most volcanologists say, but with the ground currently rising by 1.5cm (0.59 inches) a month, there is concern about the impact on local buildings.
Campi Flegrei's last major volcanic activity happened in the 1980s when 40,000 people were temporarily evacuated from Pozzuoli.
The last significant eruption happened in 1538, but researchers said one of its biggest eruptions took place 39,000 years ago, which might have been responsible for the extinction of the Neanderthals. Magma from the eruption has been found as far as Greenland.
Related Article: Seismic Activity in Naples Intensifies, Prompting Concern for Potential Volcanic Eruption Following Earthquake
