This year it will be 50 years since we had an eruption [pretty much inside a town](https://www1.mms.is/jardfraedi/pictures/heimaey_stor.jpg) and 300 houses were buried under ash and lava. Nobody died^[1](https://www1.mms.is/jardfraedi/eldfjoll.php?id=364) but these things can be more serious than bookshelves vibrating and a little bit of ash on your balcony. Not that I am cowering in fear from this possibility. Almost never crosses my mind.
We hardly notice them anymore, if we compare the 3? volcanic eruptions and a few low level earthquakes to like gun violence and deaths by car accidents or even stabbings we are pretty safe
Iceland is THE safest country in the world to live in when it comes to peace and safety. And the risk of natural disasters threatening people’s lives and homes is minimal.
Lava flows have killed like 10 people in 1000 years or something like that. The most dangerous part about volcanic eruptions is their effect on the climate and today we’re pretty well equipped to deal with that appropriately.
So no, I’m not scared of volcanos.
I realize that lava didn't reach usually VERY BIG level (meters height). Not enough to reach houses which are ready for this. What about big eruptions and earthquakes?
Quakes are not a big issue. We build our houses to withstand strong quakes, since we *do* know they *could* happen.
But from those I've experienced in 50+ years, there were mainly just a nuisance. Some property damage, but nobody getting seriously hurt. Might see some minor cracks in walls of the weaker buildings; you're more likely to see damage on the roads, which can split & crack.
It has been weird to see news of quakes out in the world with "just" R5-6 magnitude leveling towns & causing multiple deaths, while the series of quakes we had at 5-5.5 before the eruption 2 years ago, was just... uncomfortable, but no more than that.
The R7 magnitude quake we had on our national day back in 2000, was freaky and uncomfortable, but again, no major damage except mainly on roads. Any time I see news of quakes like that elsewhere, it's followed by numbers tens or hundreds of deaths, and mass destruction. So far, we've not had anything like that.
Honestly, there are far more (direct/closer) things to be worried about in life.
Yep I am Italian and here a r6 caused terrible destruction in a city.
I have a close friend of mine and she is Icelandic and was living in Iceland 2 years ago when there was the earthquake.
As soon as i read the news about the earthquake i called her all worried to see if she was fine and she was like:
"Uh!? Which earthquake?"
Here we have really shitty buildings. Back in 2012 I was in middle school i saw my classroom shake and it was caused by an r4 earthquake 240 km away.
it's not a stupid question. the uninformed here saying that are. with 30 active volcanoes, There is in fact a very present danger from the biggest volcanoes especially Katla, Hekla. we all saw what the tiny 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull did. with luck it ended how it ended and Katla is at least a 50 times bigger than that volcano. we are not scared of living here more than anywhere else because of other disasters like the giant earthquakes and floods happening elsewhere in the world to answer you: Not scared but aware of the potential danger.
Never think about them.. would be more scared living in the US for example. people there have it much worse, you cant even drive into the wrong driveway to turn around or accidentally knock at the wrong house for fear of being shot..
Just about every volcano eruption in the last 50 years has been far away from any human settlement and mostly been more a nuisance than an actual threat to any human life. Same with earthquakes - they are pretty rare and even the most dangerous ones aren't going to affect most people aside from mild housing damages and heavy things falling off shelves.
That aside if you're afraid of natural disasters if you live in Iceland the solution is just moving to a town that isn't on the fault and thus isn't in any danger of volcanos or earthquakes. The fault-line runs diagonally across Iceland from the south-west to north-east, and outside of that fault line you're not going to have eruptions or earthquakes.
Nono, women just loose the autonomy of their bodies there due to religious reasons.
I'll take volcanos and earthquakes over blatant disregard for bodily autonomy.
Women in Poland can change their gender by operation, can get nose ring. It's more like they can do what women want but she will be probably bullied or something like that, but still it isn't good. In Poland the thing that's caused becpuse of religious reasons is that homo marriages are illegal. But maybe I also prefer volcanos and earthquakes becouse our politicians made abortion illegal.
No. If those things don't kill you, the cold or avalanches will. Or you will drown in the cold black sea where no one will hear you cry for help.
Hope this eased your fears! Welcome to Iceland!
All dark humour aside, volcanoes and earthquakes have claimed a total of 1 live in last 100+ years. Even during the 1918 eruption of the volcano Katla, there was no loss of human lives. In all honesty we view eruptions and earthquakes more as nuances these days.
Congrats. The dumbest answer I have seen this week. Honestly
If you can answer in normal way just don't answer. My advice for the future. Pfff dumb guy
I am scared of those actually, more so the volcanoes rather then earthquakes. Growing up I was always more scared of floods, however the idea of a volcano making me have to move maybe even without all my things is scary. Though these are similar fears as someone living in Florida would have over floods and tornadoes, therefore I can't really say that this is a fear associated with Iceland rather general fear of natural occurances. So to answer your question, yes but I would have that same fear in most other countries you know.
That's a good question!
The rock in Iceland is relatively young and that means that the tension that builds up in the earth is released early, causing more frequent but lower energy earthquakes. Nobody here forgets that earthquakes happen. The buildings are made for it and furniture is appropriately fastened. That said, a few years ago we had many days of frequent earthquakes leading up to an eruption in Fagradalsfjall, not far from the capital. It made me uncomfortable, but I wouldn't say I fear it.
As for volcanoes /u/EgNotaEkkiReddit says they are at most a nuisance. They don't pose any real direct threat. But they still have the potential to become a huge nuisance, especially with the new activity on the Reykjanes peninsula.
So I saw this and I can tell you I never think about it. If it happens, it happens and we deal with it. I live on the Reykjanes peninsula, near the last volcanic eruption and it didn't affect my life much. I contacted my grandfather after reading this and asked him since he was in Vestmannaeyjar when the volcanic eruption was there. He fought the lava and drove a truck there most of the time the volcano was going. His answer to the question was funny. "Hey, haven't you heard the song I fought the lava? Yeah, but I won! I ain't scared of nothing I can beat!"
I've lived most of my life in Iceland but lived in another country in Europe for 6 years now.
In Iceland I had no real worries, not even of the 3 active volcanoes I could see out from my house.
In the Nordic country I live in now, I don't worry much either. However, I'm aware that gang criminality is higher where I live now and there's a certain threat of war.
War scares me more than an eruption. But that's also because I feel pretty well prepared for a volcanic eruption, but not at all prepared for war - as war is non-issue in Iceland.
Well I think I can answer this with another question
Are you not scared where you live ?
Animals that see you as food or a threat...
poison reptile, spiders, mosquitoes ...
Millions of people that just one of that millions could have dramatic impact on your life
Then I can mention some facts about Iceland geology.
Every 8 to 10 years there is a large scale earthquake that has an impact on a living community, town or the city of Reykjavík. There where frequent shakes before the [Fagradalsfjall volcano](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fagradalsfjall?wprov=sfla1) erupted they ranged from 0,X to 4,9
When those frequent shakes start to pickup tempo the geological services and the Geology department of Iceland University are really quick to detect, research, measure and notify the general public.
Volcanoes are also located under glaciers if they start to pickup heat the icecap starts to melt and the water flow of rivers start increases with increasing electrical connectivity
All in all the volcanos always have some starting signal that something could happen just a question where and when.
The same question I get about living below sealevel, and yet for me it seems scarier to live in a country where every lunatic owns a gun then living on a vulcano below sealevel.
I’d rathe be ‘scared’ of the darkness and cold for 6 months per year tbh.
I moved to Iceland about six weeks ago. I've never thought to be scared of nature -- only of the crippling boredom compared to other places. It's definitely a change of lifestyle and pace. A welcome change, but definitely a hard adjustment.
Oh and scared of trying to do anything without a kennitala
When I am not worrying about when the next volcano will erupt I certainly am worried about the next earthquake
All my furniture is bolted down to the ground and strapped to my concrete walls. This is to insure a safe home if the terrible event of an earthquake occurs.
I have 4 available gas masks at different spots in my home in case of a volcano eruption and gas/dust clouds forming from it.
I’ve bought endless amounts of rúgbrauð and shark that I keep in my basement in case of an emergency. I also keep Sbrabble and Skellur there to kill time if I ever happen to be stuck there for a long time.
But even trough all these precautions I really can’t seem to live a normal life. I’m depressed 80% of the year and my social anxiety is so high that even Hallgrímskirkja can’t reach it.
The only thing I can hope for is sunshine, some low winds and a nice trip around the country (because god forbid I’ll go on an airplane to Tenerife)
Thing is, from our perspective, y'all foreigners build shaky, creaky homes that collapse under a light breeze. We build everything with the understanding that nature will do its level best to lay waste to all the works of man, and though none can hope to win a final victory against such fury, we rise and fight the battle nevertheless, raising stone and steel to such heights as would weather the fury of the very gods.
Which is a fancy way of saying we've earthquake-proofed the entire goddamn island. Volcanoes, eh, some people live near those, I don't, but we're well prepared for the worst. Nobody (excepting the dumbest, most arrogant tourists ignoring all advice) has died to a volcano in ages.
Earthquakes and volcanoes do not kill us. What I wanna know is how Americans can live around all those gun-toting lunatics. Y'all ain't bulletproof!
Every country has its own building laws. Americans build unsafe houses in general, Japanese people are probably the best in building houses when it comes to earthquake safety. In Austria we know how to safe our houses from falling rocks for example. I am here in Iceland since January and I never felt like I have to be afraid of earthquakes or volcanoes.
I respect the Japanese as worthy builders of good, solid homes. But silly memery aside, yeah, people build for what they expect to see... and also what the corporations can get away with. There is NO excuse for what you see in Florida.
Po prostu widziałem ostatnio wulkan na islandii i Lawę. A poza tym po prostu się zastanawiam nad krajami ponieważ nie za bardzo chce mi się żyć gdzie żyje.
Nah not really, earthquakes are just a few seconds of shaking and volcanoes are mostly all far from any major population centers (except the whole Vestmannaeyjar thing a few years back)
It's the avalanches and landslides that are genuinely scary and even then its only if you live in the Westfjords, East or Tröllaskagi that you usually have to worry about them
I remember when I was a kid, learning about the history of Reykjanes volcanoes, and that they've been inactive for over 800 years and on time to erupt again any time soon...could be 1 year, could be 200 years, no one knows. I remember being a little scared of it, but thought to myself that there were so little chances of that happening while I was alive... 20 years and 2 eruptions later... :/ Not as scared as a kid, but living this close to 7 (I think) volcanoes is a little bit intimidating.. But I get around every day though x)
I can't count how many earthquakes I've been through, largest one around 6,6 Richter I think. I heard somewhere that the earthquakes in Iceland will never be as big like the ones in Indonesia and such, because the tectonic plates here are going away from each other, not pressing against each other.
It was fun to watch the Fagradalsfjall volcano through my window though.
I spend most of my waking hours huddled in fear that my bookshelf might slightly vibrate and that a dust layer might form on my balcony
Fun fact, the temperature of lava can reach up to 1200°C which is not enough to melt Icelandic irony
This year it will be 50 years since we had an eruption [pretty much inside a town](https://www1.mms.is/jardfraedi/pictures/heimaey_stor.jpg) and 300 houses were buried under ash and lava. Nobody died^[1](https://www1.mms.is/jardfraedi/eldfjoll.php?id=364) but these things can be more serious than bookshelves vibrating and a little bit of ash on your balcony. Not that I am cowering in fear from this possibility. Almost never crosses my mind.
We hardly notice them anymore, if we compare the 3? volcanic eruptions and a few low level earthquakes to like gun violence and deaths by car accidents or even stabbings we are pretty safe
Aren't you scared of living in general? All those (car) accidents, murders, random sudden death caused by your own body ..?
Actually I live in 28th safest country (murders, crimes), around 0% chances to earthquake, and village next to small city, so no.
Iceland is THE safest country in the world to live in when it comes to peace and safety. And the risk of natural disasters threatening people’s lives and homes is minimal.
>28th safest country Mauritius?
Poland
Well.. more than 35% of immigrants on Iceland are from Poland... So I don't think it's that scary for you guys :)
And there are probably many princepolo here (probably my favorite chocolate bars).
Yes there is a lot of prince polo here
I love prince polo since I was a kid :)
Lava flows have killed like 10 people in 1000 years or something like that. The most dangerous part about volcanic eruptions is their effect on the climate and today we’re pretty well equipped to deal with that appropriately. So no, I’m not scared of volcanos.
I realize that lava didn't reach usually VERY BIG level (meters height). Not enough to reach houses which are ready for this. What about big eruptions and earthquakes?
Quakes are not a big issue. We build our houses to withstand strong quakes, since we *do* know they *could* happen. But from those I've experienced in 50+ years, there were mainly just a nuisance. Some property damage, but nobody getting seriously hurt. Might see some minor cracks in walls of the weaker buildings; you're more likely to see damage on the roads, which can split & crack. It has been weird to see news of quakes out in the world with "just" R5-6 magnitude leveling towns & causing multiple deaths, while the series of quakes we had at 5-5.5 before the eruption 2 years ago, was just... uncomfortable, but no more than that. The R7 magnitude quake we had on our national day back in 2000, was freaky and uncomfortable, but again, no major damage except mainly on roads. Any time I see news of quakes like that elsewhere, it's followed by numbers tens or hundreds of deaths, and mass destruction. So far, we've not had anything like that. Honestly, there are far more (direct/closer) things to be worried about in life.
Yep I am Italian and here a r6 caused terrible destruction in a city. I have a close friend of mine and she is Icelandic and was living in Iceland 2 years ago when there was the earthquake. As soon as i read the news about the earthquake i called her all worried to see if she was fine and she was like: "Uh!? Which earthquake?" Here we have really shitty buildings. Back in 2012 I was in middle school i saw my classroom shake and it was caused by an r4 earthquake 240 km away.
Jarðskálftarnir ytra eru öflugri, þar eru flekarnir að rekast saman en hérna eru þeir að teygjast frá hvor öðrum sem má líka hafa í huga
it's not a stupid question. the uninformed here saying that are. with 30 active volcanoes, There is in fact a very present danger from the biggest volcanoes especially Katla, Hekla. we all saw what the tiny 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull did. with luck it ended how it ended and Katla is at least a 50 times bigger than that volcano. we are not scared of living here more than anywhere else because of other disasters like the giant earthquakes and floods happening elsewhere in the world to answer you: Not scared but aware of the potential danger.
Never think about them.. would be more scared living in the US for example. people there have it much worse, you cant even drive into the wrong driveway to turn around or accidentally knock at the wrong house for fear of being shot..
Questionable health care worries me more than either of those.
Just about every volcano eruption in the last 50 years has been far away from any human settlement and mostly been more a nuisance than an actual threat to any human life. Same with earthquakes - they are pretty rare and even the most dangerous ones aren't going to affect most people aside from mild housing damages and heavy things falling off shelves. That aside if you're afraid of natural disasters if you live in Iceland the solution is just moving to a town that isn't on the fault and thus isn't in any danger of volcanos or earthquakes. The fault-line runs diagonally across Iceland from the south-west to north-east, and outside of that fault line you're not going to have eruptions or earthquakes.
No
I prefer a volcano in my back yard over an AR-15 against my head , thank you .
In Poland there are none of them. But I'll prefer living in Iceland than US
Nono, women just loose the autonomy of their bodies there due to religious reasons. I'll take volcanos and earthquakes over blatant disregard for bodily autonomy.
Women in Poland can change their gender by operation, can get nose ring. It's more like they can do what women want but she will be probably bullied or something like that, but still it isn't good. In Poland the thing that's caused becpuse of religious reasons is that homo marriages are illegal. But maybe I also prefer volcanos and earthquakes becouse our politicians made abortion illegal.
I would say no, but then I remember how many times I've come close to being run over the average icelandic driver.
Well, that's just your dog nature making you run & chase cars.. ;)
No. If those things don't kill you, the cold or avalanches will. Or you will drown in the cold black sea where no one will hear you cry for help. Hope this eased your fears! Welcome to Iceland! All dark humour aside, volcanoes and earthquakes have claimed a total of 1 live in last 100+ years. Even during the 1918 eruption of the volcano Katla, there was no loss of human lives. In all honesty we view eruptions and earthquakes more as nuances these days.
Congrats. The dumbest question I have seen on Reddit today.
>Congrats. The dumbest question I have seen on Reddit today. Engin ástæða til að vera dóni.
Stendur í fornmálum að: Öll er ástæða að vera dóni þá er karlmaðr Íslenzkur sé
Congrats. The dumbest answer I have seen this week. Honestly If you can answer in normal way just don't answer. My advice for the future. Pfff dumb guy
No, this one takes the cake lol. hahaha ;)
Bruhh
Was this your first question of the week then?
No. After deeper thinking I don't know it isn't even the dumbest answer I ever saw on reddit.
I mean this reply beats his.
I am scared of those actually, more so the volcanoes rather then earthquakes. Growing up I was always more scared of floods, however the idea of a volcano making me have to move maybe even without all my things is scary. Though these are similar fears as someone living in Florida would have over floods and tornadoes, therefore I can't really say that this is a fear associated with Iceland rather general fear of natural occurances. So to answer your question, yes but I would have that same fear in most other countries you know.
That's a good question! The rock in Iceland is relatively young and that means that the tension that builds up in the earth is released early, causing more frequent but lower energy earthquakes. Nobody here forgets that earthquakes happen. The buildings are made for it and furniture is appropriately fastened. That said, a few years ago we had many days of frequent earthquakes leading up to an eruption in Fagradalsfjall, not far from the capital. It made me uncomfortable, but I wouldn't say I fear it. As for volcanoes /u/EgNotaEkkiReddit says they are at most a nuisance. They don't pose any real direct threat. But they still have the potential to become a huge nuisance, especially with the new activity on the Reykjanes peninsula.
So I saw this and I can tell you I never think about it. If it happens, it happens and we deal with it. I live on the Reykjanes peninsula, near the last volcanic eruption and it didn't affect my life much. I contacted my grandfather after reading this and asked him since he was in Vestmannaeyjar when the volcanic eruption was there. He fought the lava and drove a truck there most of the time the volcano was going. His answer to the question was funny. "Hey, haven't you heard the song I fought the lava? Yeah, but I won! I ain't scared of nothing I can beat!"
I've lived most of my life in Iceland but lived in another country in Europe for 6 years now. In Iceland I had no real worries, not even of the 3 active volcanoes I could see out from my house. In the Nordic country I live in now, I don't worry much either. However, I'm aware that gang criminality is higher where I live now and there's a certain threat of war. War scares me more than an eruption. But that's also because I feel pretty well prepared for a volcanic eruption, but not at all prepared for war - as war is non-issue in Iceland.
No, I'm more scared of being fucked over by politicians and turned into a serf.
It's just nature, we can't change it, some things are just too massive in scale to be afraid of.
Well I think I can answer this with another question Are you not scared where you live ? Animals that see you as food or a threat... poison reptile, spiders, mosquitoes ... Millions of people that just one of that millions could have dramatic impact on your life Then I can mention some facts about Iceland geology. Every 8 to 10 years there is a large scale earthquake that has an impact on a living community, town or the city of Reykjavík. There where frequent shakes before the [Fagradalsfjall volcano](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fagradalsfjall?wprov=sfla1) erupted they ranged from 0,X to 4,9 When those frequent shakes start to pickup tempo the geological services and the Geology department of Iceland University are really quick to detect, research, measure and notify the general public. Volcanoes are also located under glaciers if they start to pickup heat the icecap starts to melt and the water flow of rivers start increases with increasing electrical connectivity All in all the volcanos always have some starting signal that something could happen just a question where and when.
I cant think of a single time in my life hearing about someone dying because of an earthquake or volcano lol youre likelier to choke on a peanut
I'm scared of people. People are very good at killing each other
Sadly also good at killing themselves (suicidals)
I never leave the house.
No. Our houses are built to handle earthquakes and are not anywhere near active volcanos.
>are not anywhere near active volcanos. Except for the whole of the Reykjanes peninsula, Heimaey and a few others.. but otherwise I agree.
Hahahaha bro frl
The same question I get about living below sealevel, and yet for me it seems scarier to live in a country where every lunatic owns a gun then living on a vulcano below sealevel. I’d rathe be ‘scared’ of the darkness and cold for 6 months per year tbh.
The only thing I'm scared of in Iceland is getting clipped by a 2 meter tall 200 kilo man going mach 1 on the sidewalk with an electric scooter
I moved to Iceland about six weeks ago. I've never thought to be scared of nature -- only of the crippling boredom compared to other places. It's definitely a change of lifestyle and pace. A welcome change, but definitely a hard adjustment. Oh and scared of trying to do anything without a kennitala
When I am not worrying about when the next volcano will erupt I certainly am worried about the next earthquake All my furniture is bolted down to the ground and strapped to my concrete walls. This is to insure a safe home if the terrible event of an earthquake occurs. I have 4 available gas masks at different spots in my home in case of a volcano eruption and gas/dust clouds forming from it. I’ve bought endless amounts of rúgbrauð and shark that I keep in my basement in case of an emergency. I also keep Sbrabble and Skellur there to kill time if I ever happen to be stuck there for a long time. But even trough all these precautions I really can’t seem to live a normal life. I’m depressed 80% of the year and my social anxiety is so high that even Hallgrímskirkja can’t reach it. The only thing I can hope for is sunshine, some low winds and a nice trip around the country (because god forbid I’ll go on an airplane to Tenerife)
Thing is, from our perspective, y'all foreigners build shaky, creaky homes that collapse under a light breeze. We build everything with the understanding that nature will do its level best to lay waste to all the works of man, and though none can hope to win a final victory against such fury, we rise and fight the battle nevertheless, raising stone and steel to such heights as would weather the fury of the very gods. Which is a fancy way of saying we've earthquake-proofed the entire goddamn island. Volcanoes, eh, some people live near those, I don't, but we're well prepared for the worst. Nobody (excepting the dumbest, most arrogant tourists ignoring all advice) has died to a volcano in ages. Earthquakes and volcanoes do not kill us. What I wanna know is how Americans can live around all those gun-toting lunatics. Y'all ain't bulletproof!
Every country has its own building laws. Americans build unsafe houses in general, Japanese people are probably the best in building houses when it comes to earthquake safety. In Austria we know how to safe our houses from falling rocks for example. I am here in Iceland since January and I never felt like I have to be afraid of earthquakes or volcanoes.
I respect the Japanese as worthy builders of good, solid homes. But silly memery aside, yeah, people build for what they expect to see... and also what the corporations can get away with. There is NO excuse for what you see in Florida.
No i po co zaśmiecasz suba takim czymś xD
Po prostu widziałem ostatnio wulkan na islandii i Lawę. A poza tym po prostu się zastanawiam nad krajami ponieważ nie za bardzo chce mi się żyć gdzie żyje.
Powiem tak, brak słońca przez zime potrafi być naprawdę dołujący.
Nah not really, earthquakes are just a few seconds of shaking and volcanoes are mostly all far from any major population centers (except the whole Vestmannaeyjar thing a few years back) It's the avalanches and landslides that are genuinely scary and even then its only if you live in the Westfjords, East or Tröllaskagi that you usually have to worry about them
No, i’m in Sweden
What about rapes?
No
I remember when I was a kid, learning about the history of Reykjanes volcanoes, and that they've been inactive for over 800 years and on time to erupt again any time soon...could be 1 year, could be 200 years, no one knows. I remember being a little scared of it, but thought to myself that there were so little chances of that happening while I was alive... 20 years and 2 eruptions later... :/ Not as scared as a kid, but living this close to 7 (I think) volcanoes is a little bit intimidating.. But I get around every day though x) I can't count how many earthquakes I've been through, largest one around 6,6 Richter I think. I heard somewhere that the earthquakes in Iceland will never be as big like the ones in Indonesia and such, because the tectonic plates here are going away from each other, not pressing against each other. It was fun to watch the Fagradalsfjall volcano through my window though.
Every place has some risk of natural disasters. Earthquakes, Cyclones, tornados, hurricanes, tsunamis, blizzards, floods. .
Everyday I'm scared of going outside, it just might be the day the lava gets me.
I don't really think about it, but we all have to go sometime.