File:Building fired by lava from Eldfell eruption in 1973.jpg

English: Heimey volcanic eruption in 1973

been going through old family albums this photo is after my grandfather Óskar Elías Björnsson

On January the 23 of 1973 at around 1 a.m. in the morning, a volcanic eruption of the mountain Eldfell began on Heimaey. The ground on Heimaey started to quake and clefts[clarification needed] began to form. The clefts grew to 1600 meters in length, and soon lava began to erupt. Lava sprayed into the air from fissures in the ground. Volcanic ash was blown out to sea. Later, the situation deteriorated. When the fissures closed, the eruption converted to a concentrated lava flow that headed toward the harbour. The winds changed, and half a million cubic metres of ash were blown on to the town. During the night, the 5000 inhabitants of the island were evacuated, mostly by fishing boats, as almost the entire fishing fleet was in dock.