Soldiers clear ash from around Chile's Calbuco volcano

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Some 400 soldiers have arrived near Chile's Calbuco (kal-BOO'-koh) volcano to help residents clear ash from towns and roads.

The volcano has been quieter since last week's two big eruptions, but it continues to release columns of ash.

Chile's National Geology and Mining Service says rainfall in the coming days could cause dangerous mudflows of debris, pyroclastic material and water that would flow down the volcano's slopes and through valleys. Experts also say they fear the rain could cause the thick layer of volcanic ash to harden in place.

One local says the area looks like a "gray desert." Victor Hugo Toledo says, "Wherever you look all you see is gray dust."

Officials are urging people to keep using masks or handkerchiefs to prevent breathing in dust.

More than 6,000 people have been evacuated and authorities are maintaining a 12-mile exclusion zone around the volcano.

At the foot of the volcano, authorities have allowed some of the 1,500 people who evacuated the town of Ensenada to return temporarily to their homes to carry out belongings and clean up damage.

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