By JULIE WATSON
Associated Press Writer
MEXICO CITY
(AP)--More than 14,000 people who live near an erupting volcano
were ordered to evacuate Friday night as the fiery crater spat
out gas, vapor and ash for a fourth straight day.
Smoke billowed
from the crater of the Popocatepetl Volcano, which sits 40 miles
southeast of Mexico City. Officials feared it could begin spewing
lava: Although the number of eruptions decreased Friday, the National
Center for Disaster Prevention said earthquake detectors recorded
more tremors within the volcano, which generally indicates movement
of magna.
Officials
sent buses to take people from seven communities along Popocatepetl's
slopes to government shelters set up a safe distance away.
The evacuated
communities cover the states of Mexico, Morelos and Puebla. More
than 30,000 people live in the vicinity, but officials ordered
the evacuation of only those communities within 20 miles of the
volcano. They called the evacuation a preventative measure.
Some international
airlines canceled flights into the Mexico City airport for a second
straight day as ash fell over the area. But most continued flying
into the airport.
On Thursday,
the volcano threw ash over a 50-mile radius and spat incandescent
fragments that rolled down its slopes. On Tuesday, it erupted
200 times, a record number for a single day. Residents in villages
surrounding the volcano have been walking the streets with medical
masks over their mouths to avoid inhaling the ash.
The 17,886-foot
volcano has been shooting out vapor, ash and rock intermittently
since December 1994 after lying largely dormant since 1927.
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