Holocene block-and-ash flows from summit dome activity of Citlaltépetl volcano, Eastern Mexico

A major eruption produced several block-and-ash flows about 4,100 years B.P. at Citlaltépetl volcano (Pico de Orizaba), an ice-capped, 5670-m-high, andesitic, active stratovolcano located at the eastern end of the Mexican Volcanic Belt. Repetitive gravitational collapse of a dacitic dome at the summit crater produced a series of block-and-ash flows, lahars, and floods, which were channeled through two main river-valleys on the west and south flanks of the volcano. The total erupted volume is estimated to be at least 0.27 km3. The deposits in both areas are similar in composition, and size, but they differ in the area covered, distribution, and structure. The western deposits form a large fan, cover a larger area, and include numerous laharic and fluviatile deposits. In contrast, the southern deposits form prominent terraces where confined in narrow channels, and have associated laharic units in distal areas, where the flows reach a maximum distance of 30 km from the vent. Directed disruptions of a central summit dome occurred, possibly first to the west and then to the southeast, perhaps due to minor modifications of the summit dome morphology, producing the voluminous block-and-ash flow deposits documented here. The flows were strongly controlled by topography, influencing the deposition of the moving particles. Grain-size variations along the flow paths are hardly detectable suggesting no evident lateral downstream transformations. Because sudden changes in dome morphology may cause significant variations in the direction of future dome collapse, specific areas of potential affectation cannot be predicted. Therefore, about 350,000 inhabitants living within a radius of 35-km from the vent could be potentially impacted if catastrophic block-and-ash flows were to recur in the future from similar summit dome activity. Recognition of these deposits is therefore important for hazard assessment because some seemingly safe areas may be at high risk.