Volcanic activity decreased following the large eruption at Reventador on 3 November, but small-to-moderate eruptions continued during 5-12 November. IG reported that on the 5th, explosions produced SW-drifting ash-and-gas clouds to heights between 3 and 6 km. Ash fell in the town of Chaco. On the 7th an eruption sent an ash-and-gas cloud to 7 km that drifted W. Rain during the evening of the 9th caused mudflows to travel down the volcano's flanks, closing the Chaco-Reventador highway. According to the Washington VAAC, the maximum height reached by ash clouds during the report period was ~10 km a.s.l. On 10 November the Quito airport was reopened, after being closed for a week. Ash from previous eruptions descended on Quito on 11 November, causing officials to close schools and warn residents to protect themselves from inhaling ash.

Geological Summary. Volcán El Reventador is the most frequently active of a chain of Ecuadorian volcanoes in the Cordillera Real, well east of the principal volcanic axis. The forested, dominantly andesitic stratovolcano has 4-km-wide avalanche scarp open to the E formed by edifice collapse. A young, unvegetated, cone rises from the amphitheater floor about 1,300 m to a height comparable to the rim. It has been the source of numerous lava flows as well as explosive eruptions visible from Quito, about 90 km ESE. Frequent lahars in this region of heavy rainfall have constructed a debris plain on the eastern floor of the scarp. The largest recorded eruption took place in 2002, producing a 17-km-high eruption column, pyroclastic flows that traveled up to 8 km, and lava flows from summit and flank vents.

Sources: Reuters, Reuters, Instituto Geofísico-Escuela Politécnica Nacional (IG), Associated Press, Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC)