Modeling roadway impacts and recovery from volcanic ashfall from the 2021 St. Vincent eruption: volcano

Karl Kim; Eric Yamashita; Bruce Houghton; Nicole Boothman-Shepard; Lily Bui

doi:10.5055/jem.0826

Authors

Karl Kim, PhD https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0528-8747
Eric Yamashita, MURP https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0986-4601
Bruce Houghton, PhD
Nicole Boothman-Shepard
Lily Bui, PhD https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3944-0030

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.0826

Keywords:

volcano, ashfall, transportation, debris, recovery, St. Vincent

Abstract

Ashfall from the April 2021 La Soufrière volcano eruption significantly impacted the Caribbean Island of St. Vincent. Out of all infrastructure sectors, transportation was the most affected across the island, with damages totaling $27.5 million (USD). Removal of ash is a debris management, public health, and disaster concern. This study uses the United States Geological Survey Ash3d model to estimate the thickness of ashfall covering roads, structures, and agricultural lands, totaling 9.4 million ft.3 on roadways, 4.8 million ft.3 on structures, and 147 million ft.3 in agricultural areas. Total ashfall on the island was estimated at 1.3 billion ft.3 Long-term planning and recovery challenges include the remote island location, limited resources, and the existing social and humanitarian needs intensified by the disaster. A staged approach to cleanup, debris management, temporary storage of ash, and sustainable reuse of ash as an aggregate for paving and building materials is proposed. The benefits of new technologies for converting ash into building materials using both off- and on-island systems should be considered for reconstruction materials. Using alternatives to sand mining and developing the adaptive reuse of disaster debris would support long-term recovery and resilience.

Author Biographies

Karl Kim, PhD

Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii

Eric Yamashita, MURP

National Disaster Preparedness Training Center, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii

Bruce Houghton, PhD

Department of Earth Sciences, School of Ocean, Earth Sciences, and Technology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii

Nicole Boothman-Shepard

Vice President and Senior Director, Resilience and Recovery, AECOM, Dallas, Texas and Los Angeles, California

Lily Bui, PhD

National Disaster Preparedness Training Center, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii

References

Wilson G, Wilson TM, Deligns NI, et al.: Volcanic hazard impacts to critical infrastructure: A review. J Volcanol Geoth Res. 2014; 286: 148-182.

Wilson TM, Jenkins S, Stewart C: Chapter 3: Impacts from volcanic ash fall. In Papale P (ed.): Volcanic Hazards, Risks and Disasters. Edinburgh, UK: Elsevier, 2014: 47-86.

Wilson TM, Stewart C, Sword-Daniels V, et al.: Volcanic ash impacts on critical infrastructure. Phys Chem Earth. 2012; 45-46: 5-23.

BBC News: Indonesia volcano: Volcano rescuers face ash as high as rooftops. News. 2021. Available at https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-59532251. Accessed December 16, 2021.

Maryanto S, Santosa DR, Mulyana I, et al.: Fractal and chaos properties of explosion earthquakes followed by harmonic tremor at Semeru volcano, East Java, Indonesia. Int J Sci Eng Res. 2011; 2(7): 1-7.

Pan H, Shi P, Ye T, et al.: Mapping the expected annual fatality risk of volcano on a global scale. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2015; 13: 52-60.

Brown WF: Volcanic ash over the Caribbean, June 1951. Mon Wea Rev. 1952; 80(4): 59-62.

Ulfarsson GF, Unger EA: Impacts and responses of Icelandic aviation to the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption: Case study. Transp Res Rec. 2011; 2214(1): 144-151. DOI: 10.3141/2214-18.

Bolic T, Sivcev Z: Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland: Experience of European air traffic management. Transp Res Rec. 2011; 2214(1): 136-143. DOI: 10.3141/2214-17.

Alexander D: Volcanic ash in the atmosphere and risks for civil aviation: A study in European crisis management. Int J Disaster Risk Sci. 2013; 4(1): 9-19.

Kim K, Pant P, Yamashita E, et al.: Analysis of transportation disruptions from recent flooding and volcanic disasters. Trans Res Rec. 2019. DOI: 10.1177/0361198118825460.

Kim K, Pant P, Yamashita E: Managing uncertainty: Lessons from volcanic lava disruption of transportation infrastructure in Puna, Hawaii. J Emerg Manag. 2018; 16(1): 29-40.

Lee J, Yoon Y: Impact of Mt. Baegdu explosion to South Korea’s air traffic flow. In Presented at 94th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC, 2015.

Tamaki T, Tatano H: Evaluation method of restoration process for road networks after volcanic eruption. In The Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference of Systems, Man and Cybernetics, San Diego, CA, 2014.

Stewart C, Johnston DM, Leonard GS, et al.: Contamination of water supplies by volcanic ash: A literature review and simple impact modelling. J Volcanol Geoth Res. 2006; 158(3-4): 296-306.

Bebington M, Cronin SJ, Chapman I, et al.: Quantifying volcanic ash fall hazard to electricity infrastructure. J Volcanol Geoth Res. 2008; 177(4): 1055-1062.

Pascapurnama DN, Murakami A, Chagan-Yasutan H, et al.: Integrated health education in disaster risk reduction: Lesson learned from disease outbreak following natural disasters in Indonesia. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2018; 29: 94-102.

Damby DE, Horwell CJ, Baxter PJ, et al.: The respiratory health hazard of tephra from the 2010 Centennial eruption of Merapi with implications for occupational mining of deposits. J Volcanol Geoth Res. 2013; 261: 376-387. DOI: 10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2012.09.001.

UNDP: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: La Soufrière volcanic eruption—Post disaster needs assessment. 2021. Available at https://reliefweb.int/report/saint-vincent-and-Grenadines/saint-vincent-and-Grenadines-la-soufri-re-volcanic-eruption-post. Accessed December 16, 2021.

UNDP: Government & UNDP ash cleaning and emergency employment programme underway in response to the volcano eruption in St. Vincent. 2021. Available at https://www.bb.undp.org/content/barbados/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/20192/undpash-cleaning-and-emergency-employment-underway-in-response-.html. Accessed July 29, 2021.

UN Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean: In the wake of La Soufrière’s eruption, OCHA-UNEP deploy team of environmental experts to the Eastern Caribbean. 2021. Available at https://easterncaribbean.un.org/en/126063-wake-lasoufri%C3%A8re%E2%80%99s-eruption-ocha-unep-deploy-teamenvironmental-experts-Eastern-caribbean. Accessed July 29, 2021.

NDPTC: AWR-233 volcanic crisis awareness. University of Hawaii and FEMA. 2012.

NDPTC: MGT-460 planning for disaster debris management. University of Hawaii and FEMA. 2018.

Hayes J, Wilson TM, Deligne NI, et al.: A model to assess tephra cleanup requirements in urban environments. J Appl Volcanol. 2017; 6(1). DOI: 10.1186/s13617-016-0052-3.

Hayes JL, Wilson TM, Brown C, et al.: Assessing urban disaster waste management requirements after volcanic eruptions. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2021; 52: 101935. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2020.101935.

Wisner B: Build back better? The challenge of Goma and beyond. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2017; 26: 101-105.

UNDP: EC$1.1 million allocated by the government of Spain to accelerate volcano relief efforts in St. Vincent and the Grenadines tied to ash removal in priority areas, 2021. ReliefWeb. Available at https://reliefweb.int/report/saint-vincent-and-grenadines/ec11-million-allocated-government-spain-accelerate-volcano. Accessed December 17, 2021.

Murray R: Disaster risk reduction country document: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO), Ministry of National Security, Air and Sea Port Development, Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. 2014. Available at https://dipecholac.net/docs/files/789-cd-svg.pdf. Accessed December 16, 2021.

Fielding R, Degraff Ollivierre A: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. In Allen C (ed.): Landscape and Landforms of the Lesser Antilles: World Geomorphological Landscapes. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing, 2017. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-55787-8_15.

Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey: Global volcanism program: Report on Soufriere St. Vincent (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines). In Sennert SK (ed.): Weekly Volcanic Activity Report 7 April-13 April 2021. Available at https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=360150. Accessed July 31, 2021.

Mastin LG, Randall MJ, Schwaiger HF, et al.: User’s guide and reference to Ash3d: A three-dimensional model for Eulerian atmospheric tephra transport and deposition. In Open-File Report. Reston, VA. 2021. Available at https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/ofr20131122. Accessed December 16, 2021.

USGS: Ash3d: Volcanic ash dispersion model. n.d. Available at https://vsc-ash.wr.usgs.gov/ash3d-gui/#!/. Accessed July 16, 2021.

USGS: Volcanic ash impacts and mitigation. n.d. Available at https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanic_ash/. Accessed July 16, 2021.

AIA (Argyle International Airport Incorporated): Airport facilities and management. n.d. Available at http://www.svg-airport.com/about/. Accessed July 15, 2021.

PAHO (Pan-American Health Organization): La Soufriere volcano St. Vincent and the Grenadines situation report #2. Available at http://www.gov.vc/images/pdf_documents/ECC_VCT_Soufriere_-Volcano_-SitRep_2_10_-April_2021_-Updated.pdf. Accessed July 29, 2021.

Deane K: New blast at St. Vincent volcano; cruise ship helps evacuees. 2021. Available at https://apnews.com/article/science-generalnews-d1c964850df369427539c53b6027d2bf. Accessed July 29, 2021.

BPI (Barbados Port, Inc.): BPI Facebook page, post from April 19, 2021. Available at www.facebook.com/barbadosportinc. Accessed July 30, 2021.

Covey J, Horwell CJ, Ogawa R, et al.: Community perceptions of protective practices to prevent ash exposures around Sakurajima volcano, Japan. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2020; 46: 101525.

IVHHN: Health impacts of volcanic ash. Available at https://www.ivhhn.org/information/health-impacts-volcanic-ash. Accessed October 31, 2023.

Horwell CJ, Baxter PJ: The respiratory health hazard of volcanic ash: A review for volcanic risk mitigation. Bull Volcanol. 2006; 69: 1-24. DOI: 10.1007/s00445-006-0052-y.

Wiranata DY, Yang S-H, Akgul CM, et al.: Use of coal ash cement stabilized material as pavement base material: Laboratory characterization and field evaluation. Constr Build Mater. 2022; 344: 128055.

Hirashima KB: Highway construction problems involving plastic volcanic ash. Highway Res Bull. 1951; 44: 1-10.

Hirashima KB: Hawaiian volcanic aggregates. In The Proceedings of the 29th Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board, Washington, DC, 1949.

Shah NS, George KP, Srinivasa RJ: Promising marginal aggregates for low-volume roads. In Presented at 3rd International Conference on Low-Volume Roads, Tempe Arizona, USA, 1983.

Zhou S, Yang Z, Zhang R, et al.: Preparation, characterization and rheological analysis of eco-friendly road geopolymer grouting materials based on volcanic ash and Metakaolin. J Cleaner Prod. 2021; 312: 127822. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.127822.

Contrafatto L: Recycled etna volcanic ash for cement, mortar and concrete manufacturing. Const Build Mater. 2017; 151: 704-713.

Kunal K-P, De Wolf C, Chin S, et al.: Impact of embodied energy on materials/buildings with partial replacement of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) by natural pozzolanic volcanic ash. J Cleaner Prod. 2018; 177: 547-544.

Leonelli C, Kamseu E, Boccaccini DN, et al.: Volcanic ash as alternative raw materials for traditional vitrified ceramic products. Adv Appl Ceram Struct Funct Bioceramics. 2007; 106(3): 135-141.

Seddik Meddah M: Durability performance and engineering properties of shale and volcanic ashes concretes. Constr Build Mater. 2015; 79: 73-82.

Al-Fadala S, Chakkamalayath J, Al-Bahar S, et al.: Significance of performance-based specifications in the qualification and characterization of blended cement using volcanic ash. Constr Build Mater. 2017; 144: 532-540.

Cai G, Noguchi T, Degee H, et al.: Volcano-related materials in concrete: A comprehensive review. Environ Sci Pollut Res. 2016; 23: 7220-7243.

Jiang W, Roy DM: Hydrothermal processing of new fly ash cement. Am Ceram Soc Bull. 1992; 71(4): 91-97.

Gong Y, Liu C, Chen Y: Properties and mechanism of hydration of fly ash belite cement prepared from low-quality fly ash. Appl Sci. 2020; 10: 7026. DOI: 10.3390/app10207026.

Navajo Flexcrete Building Systems, Inc.: Flexcrete Technical Manual. Page, Arizona: Navajo Flexcrete, 2021.

Houghton BF, Cockshell WA, Gregg CE, et al.: Land, lava, and disaster create a social dilemma after the 2018 eruption of Kilauea volcano. Nat Commun. 2021; 12: 1223. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-21455-2.

Maharani YN, Lee S, Ki SJ: Social vulnerability at a local level around the Merapi volcano. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2016; 20: 63-77.

Meilasari-Sugiana A, Endro G: Shaping collecting action for community-based disaster management in Merapi, Central Java, Indonesia. J Emerg Manag. 2019; 17(5): 385-401.

Asano T, Nagayama A: Analysis of workload required for removal of drifting pumice after a volcanic disaster as an aspect of a port business continuity plan: A case study of Kagoshima port, Japan. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2021; 64: 102511.

Domingo N, Luo HAO: Canterbury earthquake construction and demolition waste management: Issues and improvement suggestions. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2017; 22: 130-138.

Ferdinand I, O’Brien G, O’Keefe P, et al.: The double bind of poverty and community disaster risk reduction: A case study from the Caribbean. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2012; 2: 84-94.

Graham O, Edwards S, Robertson R: Managing stakeholder relationships for improved situation awareness during volcanic emergencies: An Eastern Caribbean case study. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2021; 67: 102656.

Shreve CM, Kelman I: Does mitigation save? Reviewing cost-benefit analyses of disaster risk reduction. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2014; 10: 213-235.

Kelman I: Connecting theories of cascading disasters and disaster diplomacy. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2018; 30: 172-179.

Kim K, Yamashita E, Ghimire J, et al.: Knowledge to action: Resilience planning among state and local transportation agencies in the United States. J Emerg Manag. 2023; 21(1): 7-22.

Kim K, Wolshon B, Pant P, et al.: Assessment of evacuation training needs: Targeting instruction to meet the requirements of local communities and agencies. J Emerg Manang. 2020; 18(6): 475-487.

Whiteside A, Dupouy C, Singh A, et al.: Impact of ashes from the 2022 Tonga volcanic eruption on satellite ocean color signatures. Front Mar Sci. 2023; 9. DOI: 10.3389/fmars.2022.1028022.