The international spotlight is now on Reunion Island. With increasingly solid evidence that the wing part found is part of the ill-fated Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370, people with an interest in it have converged on France's southernmost point.
The international community is working around the clock to put an end to this dark chapter in aviation history. However, along with all this attention to finding the missing plane is the renewed interest in Reunion Island itself.
The French territory, which lies 370 miles east of Madagascar, is home to 800,000 people-and the extra active volcano Piton de la Fournaise. As international aviation experts from governments and Boeing descend on the island, tagging along are the scientists who have long observed the activities of the island and its many natural occurrences.
One of them is Nicolas Villanueve. He shared with Reuters that "before, the only people who knew about this island were scientists and surfers." And now that he is back, he has made a discovery. According to him, the famed volcano is erupting again.
The thick black smoke emerging from the volcano and the glowing lava from it are big indicators that a possible eruption requiring evacuation might be imminent. If correct, this will be the biggest eruption since 2007.
Aside from the Piton de la Fournaise, another natural danger around Reunion Island is sharks. The island was once considered a surfer's paradise. However, the frequency of shark attacks prompted local officials to ban surfing in 2013 and implement a fine against anyone surfing, bodyboarding, and swimming.
These measures are just a few among many to address the increased frequency of shark attacks. A shift to dry land tourism also seems to be the best decision. The drastic measures come as no surprise as 16 attacks have plagued surfers since 2011. Seven of these attacks were fatal.
