In Iceland, a town still shaken by volcanic eruptions tries to recover

GRINDAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Vignir Kristinsson smiles as two women, the only customers all morning, enter his gift shop filled with handmade things of oak. After perusing decorations ranging from animals to kitchen cutting boards, one woman bought a small black-stained tree.

After decades of making cabinets for a living, Kristinsson, 64, said his daughter persuaded him to turn passion for woodworking into a business. Five years ago he and his wife opened the shop in Grindavik, a coastal town of 3,800 people about 50 kilometers (30 miles) southwest of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik. Business was good.

Then the volcanic eruptions began.

Since December 2023, nine eruptions near Grindavik have forced residents to repeatedly evacuate, with authorities closing the town for periods ranging from a few days to months.

“I’m supposed to run a business when people are told they should not come,” Kristinsson said. “How is that possible?”

Iceland is known for volcanoes

Icelanders are no strangers to eruptions. The ones near Grindavik have come from the Sundhnuksgígar crater row, a series of volcanic fissures that are part of the Svartsengi volcanic system, in the Reykjanes Peninsula.

Before the first eruption nearly two years ago, the system had been dormant for 783 years.

Scientists say the volcanic activity is not over. The Icelandic Meteorological Office, which monitors volcanoes, in September said a 10th eruption was likely in the months ahead. It’s impossible to know how long the activity may last.

Residents say they are used to the constant stress.

“When we had to leave, we had five minutes to get our stuff,” said Kristólína Ósk Guðjónsdóttir, 18, recalling the first evacuation in November 2023.

Since then, Guðjónsdóttir has been going to a high school in Keflavik, about 23 kilometers (14 miles) north of Grindavik. She said it’s been hard for friends to keep a sense of community with schools shuttered.

“I know many kids want to come back,” she said.

Empty houses, but signs of recovery

In parts of Grindavík and surrounding areas, lava has buried roads and houses, leaving sharp rocks which smolder for months. The intense shaking during eruptions, caused by the movement of magma intrusions underground, has left large fissures in the ground along with cracks in roads and houses.

While most residents have moved away, some have stayed. They are both exhausted by the disruptions and hopeful that life can eventually return to normal.

But that feels far off. Most businesses are closed. Tourists may be the biggest sign of human activity. They fly drones over vast lava beds outside Grindavik and explore the town and its damage.

Still, there are modest signs of recovery. The local professional basketball team recently began playing games in the town again, and authorities are discussing the possibility of opening schools next year. Local news reports say more residents are returning, though it’s not clear know how many.

An interview request to the mayor’s office was not answered.

Former residents weigh what to do with homes

Beginning in early 2024, residents said the government offered to buy their houses, a deal that many have taken. It gave them three years to decide whether to buy them back. The government has not made the same offer for commercial properties.

Decisions on whether to buy back homes likely will depend on many factors, including how much their lives have moved on elsewhere.

Kristinsson, the craftsman, said his wife has made clear she does not want to move back to Grindavik. After living in their daughter’s garage for a month, then a cousin’s apartment for six months, the couple bought a house in Hafnarfjordur, 42 kilometers (26 miles) northeast of Grindavik.

Kristinsson comes to Grindavik to open his store and sometimes spend the night there when he is able to rent to tourists an apartment he built on the second floor. He called that income a lifeline.

“People who live here now want to see things come back faster,” he said.

For Sigurður Enoksson, 60-year-old owner of Herastubbur Bakari, a bakery, the decision on whether to buy back their house is an easy one: No.

While discussing their decision on a recent day, Enoksson and his wife showed cell phone photos of the cracks in the walls. They now live in Kopavogur, about 47 kilometers (29 miles) northeast of Grindavik.

But the family will remain committed to the town through their bakery, which just celebrated its 30th anniversary. To survive, the business has reduced staffing from 13 people to three: Enoksson, his wife and one son.

Knowing how much to bake is a challenge. Some days they sell everything. Other days they are forced to give pastries away.

“There are not always customers each day,” Enoksson said. “We are trying our best.”

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