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Vignir Kristinsson brings smiles to the faces of two women who are his only customers all morning, browsing the handmade oak creations in his Grindavik gift shop.
After purchasing a small, black-stained tree, a 64-year-old woodworker reflects on a business that was once thriving, now facing an uncertain future.
For decades, Mr. Kristinsson designed cabinets, but five years ago, his daughter convinced him to open this shop with his wife.
Based in the coastal town of Grindavik, home to 3,800 people, about 50 kilometers southwest of Iceland’s capital Reykjavik, the venture was a great success. However, that prosperity ended suddenly when the volcano began erupting.
Since December 2023, nine explosions near Grindavik have forced residents to repeatedly evacuate, with authorities closing the town for periods ranging from a few days to months.
“I’m supposed to be running a business when people are told they shouldn’t come,” Christinson said. “how is that possible?”
Icelanders are no strangers to explosions. The ones near Grindavik come from the Sundnuksgiger crater row in the Reykjanes Peninsula, a series of volcanic fissures that are part of the Svartsengi volcanic system.
Map of Grindavik:
Before the first eruption about two years ago, the system was dormant for 783 years.
Scientist It is said that volcanic activity has not ended. The Icelandic Meteorological Office, which monitors volcanoes, said in September that a 10th eruption was likely in the coming months. It is impossible to know how long the activity may last.
Residents say they have become accustomed to the constant stress.
“When we had to leave, we had five minutes to get our stuff,” Kristolina Osak Gujonsdottir, 18, said, recalling the first evacuation in November 2023.
Since then, Gudjunsdottir has been attending a high school in Keflavík, about 23 kilometers (14 mi) north of Grindavik. School closures have made it difficult for friends to maintain a sense of community, she said.
“I know a lot of kids want to come back,” she said.
In Grindavik and surrounding areas, lava has buried roads and homes, leaving sharp rocks that smolder for months. The intense shaking caused by underground infiltration during the eruptions has left large cracks in the ground along with cracks in roads and houses.
While most residents have left, some have stayed. They are both tired of the disruptions and are hoping that life can finally return to normal.
But this seems very far away. Most businesses are closed. to tourists Could be the biggest sign of human activity. They fly a drone over the giant lava beds outside Grindavik and explore the city and its damage.
Still, there are modest signs of improvement. The local professional basketball team recently began playing games in the city again, and officials are discussing the possibility of opening a school next year. Local news reports say more residents are returning, although it is unclear how many.
A request for an interview with the mayor’s office was not responded to.
In early 2024, residents said the government offered to buy their homes, a deal that many accepted. They were given three years to decide whether to buy them back or not. The government has not made a similar offer for commercial properties.
The decision to buy back a home will likely depend on a number of factors, including how far along their life has progressed elsewhere.
Craftsman Kristinsson said his wife had made it clear she did not want to return to Grindavik. After living in their daughter’s garage for a month, then in a cousin’s apartment for six months, the couple bought a house in Hafnarfjordur, 42 kilometers (26 mi) northeast of Grindavik.
Kristinsson comes to Grindavik to open his store and sometimes spends the night there when he is able to rent a tourists He built an apartment on the second floor. He called that income a lifeline.
,People “People who live here now want to see things come back quickly,” he said.
For Sigurður Enoksson, the 60-year-old owner of the bakery Hrastadur Bakri, the decision to buy back his home is easy: No.
Discussing their decision on a recent day, Enoxen and his wife showed cell phone photos of cracks in the walls. They now live in Kopavogur, about 47 kilometers (29 mi) northeast of Grindavik.
But the family will remain committed to the city through their bakery, which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. To survive, the business has reduced the number of employees from 13 people to three: Enokson, his wife, and a son.
Knowing how much to cook is a challenge. Some days they sell everything. On other days they are forced to give pastries.
“There aren’t always customers every day,” Enokson said. “We’re trying our best.”