FILE PHOTO: Streams of red hot lava shoot into the night sky during an eruption of the Pacaya volcano, as seen from Los Rios
By Sofia Menchu
GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - A delegation of senior Biden administration aides has postponed a trip to Guatemala because of heightened activity by the Pacaya volcano, the Central American country's foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
Juan Gonzalez, one of U.S. President Joe Biden's top aides for Latin America, and Ricardo Zuniga, newly appointed U.S. special envoy for Central America's Northern Triangle, were due to meet with Guatemalan ministers on Thursday.
"The mission decided to postpone its arrival in Guatemala because of the conditions with the Pacaya volcano," the foreign ministry said, adding that no new date had yet been set for the postponed meetings.
Shortly after the postponement was announced, Biden named Vice President Kamala Harris to lead U.S. efforts with Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador to try and stem the flow of migration, amid a sharp rise in recent weeks.
Ahead of the scheduled visit, the envoys said the Biden strategy would include a focus on improving the rule of law and tackling corruption in the Northern Triangle.
"They can criticize us for trying to involve ourselves in internal matters, but when Guatemala's justice system works the United States benefits," Gonzalez told Guatemalan newspaper Prensa Libre.
Pacaya spewed ash and small rocks across Guatemala's capital on Tuesday, causing the temporary closure of the international airport. The airport was officially open on Wednesday morning, after soldiers armed with plastic brooms swept the runway clean.
"Foiled by Pacaya," Gonzalez wrote on Twitter. "We will be back."
(Reporting by Sofia Menchu; Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Rosalba O'Brien)
Guatemala City airport closed as volcanic ash coats planes
GUATEMALA CITY — A shift in wind blew ash from an eruption at the Pacaya volcano over Guatemala City on Tuesday, and authorities closed the airport as ash coated planes and planes parked at the terminal.
GUATEMALA CITY — A shift in wind blew ash from an eruption at the Pacaya volcano over Guatemala City on Tuesday, and authorities closed the airport as ash coated planes and planes parked at the terminal.
© Provided by The Canadian Press
The 8,373-foot (2,552 metre) volcano, just 30 miles (50 kilometres) south of Guatemala's capital, has been active since early February.
Civil Aviation Director Francis Argueta did not say how long the closure would last. Volcanic ash is highly abrasive and can damage airplane engines and other mechanical devices.
Tourists frequently hike up to visit Pacaya's peak, but those trips have been temporarily cancelled.
Pacaya has a clear view of the nearby Volcano of Fire, which erupted in 2018, emitting a fast-moving avalanche of super-heated muck that killed at least 110 people and left about 200 missing. Pacaya had an explosive blast in 2010 that killed a reporter and two local people.
The Associated Press
The 8,373-foot (2,552 metre) volcano, just 30 miles (50 kilometres) south of Guatemala's capital, has been active since early February.
Civil Aviation Director Francis Argueta did not say how long the closure would last. Volcanic ash is highly abrasive and can damage airplane engines and other mechanical devices.
Tourists frequently hike up to visit Pacaya's peak, but those trips have been temporarily cancelled.
Pacaya has a clear view of the nearby Volcano of Fire, which erupted in 2018, emitting a fast-moving avalanche of super-heated muck that killed at least 110 people and left about 200 missing. Pacaya had an explosive blast in 2010 that killed a reporter and two local people.
The Associated Press
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