Danger from Papua New Guinea eruption passes

CANBERRA, Oct 8 (Reuters) A volcano which erupted on the Papua New Guinea island of New Britain causing panicked residents to flee homes has returned to near-normal activity and the danger of fresh eruptions has passed, vulcanologists said today.

Mount Tavurvur on the outskirts of the former provincial capital, Rabaul, erupted yesterday with a blast that shattered windows up to 12 km from the volcano.

Around 2,000 people -- 90 per cent of the local population -- fled the town as ash rained down from an 18-km plume and lava poured off the mountain's southern slopes into the sea.

But a spokesman for the Rabaul Volcanological Observatory said the level of volcanic activity had dropped significantly since late yesterday afternoon.

''There are a few occasional explosions, but the danger has passed. It is back to almost normal now,'' John Bosco told Reuters.

In 1994, a large eruption on Mount Tavurvur and the nearby Vulcan peak destroyed much of Rabaul, covering the airport and areas of the town with ash, and forcing construction of a new capital, Kokopo, 20 km away.

Papua New Guinea lies on the Pacific Ocean ''ring of fire'', and earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are common.

REUTERS DKS RK0800