Volcanic hazards and public response.

Although scientific understanding of volcanoes is advancing, eruptions continue to take a substantial toll of life and property. Some of these losses could be reduced by better advance preparations, more effective flow of information between scientists and public officials, and better understanding of volcanic behaviour by all segments of the public. However, the underlying problem embraces a set of more complex issues comprising 3 pervasive factors: 1) the volcano: signals given by restless volcanoes are often ambiguous and difficult to interpret, especially at long-quiescent volcanoes; 2) people: people confront hazardous volcanoes in widely divergent ways, and many have difficulty in dealing with the uncertainties inherent in volcanic unrest; 3) the scientists: volcanologists correctly place their highest priority on monitoring and hazard assessment, but they sometimes fail to explain clearly their conclusions to responsible officials and the public, which may lead to inadequate public response.-from Author