According to a news article, INSIVUMEH staff stated that beginning on 11 March volcanic activity increased at Santa María's lava-dome complex, Santiaguito. Until at least 14 March, ash was emitted from nearly constant explosions and fractures opened on the volcano. Ash rose 600-900 m above the volcano and fell in the towns of Retalhuleu (25 km SSE of the volcano) and San Marcos, and in areas that border México.

Geological Summary. Symmetrical, forest-covered Santa María volcano is part of a chain of large stratovolcanoes that rise above the Pacific coastal plain of Guatemala. The sharp-topped, conical profile is cut on the SW flank by a 1.5-km-wide crater. The oval-shaped crater extends from just below the summit to the lower flank, and was formed during a catastrophic eruption in 1902. The renowned Plinian eruption of 1902 that devastated much of SW Guatemala followed a long repose period after construction of the large basaltic-andesite stratovolcano. The massive dacitic Santiaguito lava-dome complex has been growing at the base of the 1902 crater since 1922. Compound dome growth at Santiaguito has occurred episodically from four vents, with activity progressing W towards the most recent, Caliente. Dome growth has been accompanied by almost continuous minor explosions, with periodic lava extrusion, larger explosions, pyroclastic flows, and lahars.

Source: Prensa Libre