Iceland volcano eruption destroys homes as president says region entering 'a daunting period of upheaval'

A volcanic eruption in Iceland has destroyed homes in the evacuated town of Grindavik as the country’s president is declaring that "a daunting period of upheaval has begun on the Reykjanes peninsula" where it unfolded. 

One person has been reported missing after falling into a crack opened by the volcano, which erupted in southwestern Iceland on Sunday. A series of earthquakes in the area late last year preceded an eruption on Dec. 18 – which spared Grindavik – but this time, aerial images have captured damage being done to homes and roads in the fishing town. 

"We don’t yet know how this eruption will unfold, but we must still take those actions that are within our power," Iceland President Guoni Th. Johannesson said in an address late Sunday, according to The Associated Press. "We will carry on with our responsibilities and we will continue to stand together. 

"We continue to hope for as good an outcome as possible, in the face of these tremendous forces of nature," he added. 

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Scientists said Monday that the eruption appeared to be dying down, but it was too soon to declare the danger over. 

Grindavik, a town of 3,800 people about 30 miles southwest of the capital, Reykjavik, was previously evacuated in November when the Svartsengi volcanic system awakened after almost 800 years. Residents were allowed to return on Dec. 22 following the first eruption. Since then, emergency workers have been building defensive walls that have stopped much of the lava flow from the new eruption on Sunday near the town. 

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"Unfortunately [the lava] went a little bit more south than we had hoped for," Vidir Reynisson, the leader of Iceland's Civil Protection and Emergency Management, was quoted by Reuters as saying Sunday. 

"This is serious, it's basically as bad as it can possibly get. Although it might get even worse, who knows," Jon Gauti Dagbjartsson, an evacuated resident, also told Reuters. 

"I actually live in the house that I was born in and it's a tough thought to think that this town might be over, and I would have to start all over somewhere else," he added. "But if that's the case, then that's exactly what we'll do."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.