Chilean navy ships transported many of the 4,500 residents of Chaitén to safety after a volcano of the same name erupted violently a few miles away for the first time in at least 9,000 years.

Falling ash blew hundreds of miles eastward across Argentina’s Patagonia region, killing livestock, poisoning crops and contaminating water supplies as it fell to the ground.

Scientists say it could be months before the volcano calms down enough to allow the evacuees to return home.

Beyond the humanitarian crisis caused by the eruption, livestock and other animals are dying or in acute danger of being killed from the thick blanket of ash covering pastures and other grazing areas.

The animals are being forced to fend for themselves in the absence of the human population that would normally care for them.

A team of veterinarians was searching through the deserted town of Chaiten on Thursday to rescue pets abandoned by their owners during the evacuation.

"We are collecting pets from backyards of houses and taking them to the municipal gym, where it will be easier to feed them," said Macarena Zanelli, head of the veterinary faculty of the University of Saint Thomas in the southern town of Puerto Montt, where many evacuees are being sheltered.

Photo Gallery of Chaitén Eruption

Photo: Sergio Gonzalez - El Mercurio
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