Accidents on Stromboli volcano

24. July 1986: Accident caused by «normal» eruption

Albert Perez-Bastardas, a 33 years old biologist from Barcelona (Spain), was killed after descending from Pizzo towards a place somewhat nearer the craters. He was surprised by an eruption, tried to run for cover, but got hit by a bomb.

Below follows a report sent to us by Teresa Franquesa, who was with him.

We went to Stromboli as a part of our journeys around the volcanic islands that had attracted us for many years (Iceland, Canary, Santorini). A friend, who had been there on a trip organised by a youth group, had told us about her fantastic experience, spending a night in a bivouac at the crater ridge, observing the volcano spectacular activity.

We arrived on the 23rd July 1986 and immediately fell in love with the small island of narrow bougainvillea covered streets. We took lodgings in a very nice little hotel, where we were given all the information on the climb itinerary, the characteristics of the route, recommended timetables etc. We decided to make the climb at daybreak the following day. At night, on the recommendation of the locals, we took a boat to see the Sciara del fuoco from the sea, but in the couple of hours we spent on the small boat we saw no sign of activity from the volcano.

On the 24th we began our excursion a little after 7.00am, having had breakfast on the terrace overlooking the sea. The day was magnificent, intense blue skies and not a cloud to be seen. The ascent was hard and the heat harsh, but they didn't present any major problems. Memories of the climb are of it being time-consuming. Firstly, not being able to tear your eyes from the spectacular Caper flowers, white sparkles between the black rocks; secondly, being dominated by the magnificent panoramic views that opened over the sea and land as we progressed ever nearer to the unsettling presence of the eye of the volcano.

We arrived at the summit a little before 11 o?clock. There we spent more than an hour observing the crater and the small explosions that occurred approximately every 10 minutes. One couple, who had arrived after us, decided to continue walking along the crest that descended into the crater, marked here and there with rudimentary rock constructions which protects the people who camped at the bivouac, and went as far as the crater?s edge. We became eager to be down there, too. The chance to see inside the crater seemed a shame to waste. The notion of danger didn?t present itself. No one had mentioned any such thing. Certainly, up here the explosions produced a terrifying noise, but no more than that, not one of the explosions we?d seen or heard since the day before seemed a real threat. We descended.

At 12.30 Stromboli gave a frightening explosion. The ash blackened the sky and numerous huge volcanic bombs were thrown into the air. One of which fell onto the head of Albert, while he fled running, killing him in the act. He is buried in Stromboli?s small white cemetery, in the middle of the sea that he so loved.