La Soufriere's ashes, Sahara dust cover Grenada

GRENADIANS and neighbouring islands are experiencing particularly poor breathing conditions, decreased visibility and other hazards associated with a combination of Saharan dust and volcanic ash travelling from St Vincent's La Soufriere volcano.

The Meteorological Office at the Maurice Bishop International Airport in Grenada issued a statement on Sunday, along with a marine advisory, saying the combination of volcanic ash and dust is expected to reduce visibility.

Dust levels are expected to drop by mid-week. On Sunday, however, a combination of volcanic ash from La Soufriere and the Sahara dust, left several islands, including Grenada, covered in ash, which the Met Office said was caused by low-level winds.

Barbadians reported seeing ash starting to settle early Saturday morning.

The Met Office's statement read, "...model guidance of surface dust concentration indicates that a significant concentration of dust is expected to persist for the next day or two."

While the ash is forecast to move off to the east and northeast of St Vincent, the statement said it is possible for minute ash particles to spread southward and deposit over Grenada.

Director of UWI's Seismic Research Centre Dr Richard Robertson addressed this, on Sunday, saying, "Volcanic ash hazard is not properly understood or dealt with in the region. I think this volcanic eruption and the impact of the ash, because it's spitting out so much into the atmosphere, would illustrate that. And I hope that the resources and attention that is needed to better understand it, quantify it and, therefore, respond to it.

"We have a lot of aviation traffic in the region. We all tend to think when a volcano in St Vincent erupts, it's mainly St Vincent.

"The fact is, we all are islands and these volcanoes, when they erupt, they're going to affect all the islands."

The ash, he said, is "a good thing and a bad thing."

The ash is absorbed into soil over time, making it more fertile. However, it can almost immediately result in crop failure and contaminate a water supply. It can be dangerous to one's heath too, sometimes resulting in respiratory problems, eye problems, skin irritation and other issues.