Hey Arctic tourists, here’s why you should be careful around calving glaciers
Tourists in Iceland experience a close call, as a calving glacier created dangerous waves in Jökulsárlón lagoon.
Tourists were filmed fleeing from the edge of a lagoon in Iceland on Sunday, as a glacier calved there, creating large pulsating waves near the shore.
In the video captured by tour guide Stephan Mantler on the edge of the popular Jökulsárlón lagoon, part of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier can be seen falling into the water creating a series of large waves that rushed towards shore as the tourists fled.
The tourists had been briefed in advance about the danger of of such waves and how to respond, Mantler said.
“This area is only accessible with mountain guides and everybody shown in the video had been previously instructed to immediately leave the beach if a calving occurs,” Mantler said. “Due to the sheer size and proximity it was a bit of a close call but everybody was safe and stayed dry.”
According to Iceland Monitor, Mantler told an Icelandic broadcaster that the wave was unusually large for the lagoon.
