Villages final chapter as Iceland volcanos worst-case scenario laid bare

The "worst-case scenario" in Iceland's imminent volcano eruption has been laid bare as one fishing town could be heading towards its "final chapter."

The town of Grindavik, near the capital of Reykjavík, is expected to bear the brunt of the Fagradalsfjall volcano's next blast, which has now been expected since last weekend. Already nearly 4,000 people have been evacuated from more than 1,000 homes.

The town has suffered catastrophic effects of tens of thousands of earthquakes, with one area of land having sunk about one metre and still moving. A river of magma has also begun flowing under the village.

READ MORE: Volcano-ridden island declares 'state of emergency' as 30,000 earthquakes measured

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Posting about the natural disasters in a video titled "Irreparable Damage Already and Sadness – Grindavik Awaits the Final Chapter," YouTuber Just Icelandic said Grindavik may be "beyond repair". "Since Sunday we have seen the fishing village Grindavik sink into the ground in front of us," a narrator said over photos of the disaster. "It's like a slow motion disaster movie we can't run away from.

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"Even [if] our luck would turn from now, and there would be no eruption at all, the town might be damaged beyond repair, or at least a big part of it." The channel said evacuees from the town were given just two to three hours to leave their homes as the river of magma started flowing under the ground beneath their streets.

The channel continued: "This is already the worst natural disaster to strike Iceland since 1973, and this is also a way more complicated event. […] The eruption hasn't even started, and the town is already in ruins."

The narrator went on to describe how sinkholes and ground fractures had popped up all over the town and buildings had been left "skewed." He added the town's "best-case scenario" would still see Grindavik's population plummet as many areas have already suffered severe damage.

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The "worst-case scenario" could see the whole town wiped out. "It is already clear that this community will never be quite the same again," the video added.

Iceland has already declared a "state of emergency" in response to the many earthquakes and possible eruption, with Fagradalsfjall expected to spew lava from one of its craters within days, the Daily Star previously reported.

"The magma is now at a very shallow depth, so we're expecting an eruption within a couple of hours at the shortest, but at least within a couple of days," said Vidir Reynisson, head of Iceland's Civil Protection and Emergency Management Department, last weekend.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office said there was a "considerable" risk of an eruption, while authorities in the country have said the flowing molten rock "could obliterate" Grindavik.

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