AMBATO, Ecuador -- Guillermo Herrera once relied on the Tungurahua volcano to draw customers to his hotel. That was before he and thousands of other Ecuadoreans were forced to abandon their homes and businesses by the threat of a cataclysmic eruption.
The October exodus has been another economic blow for this small South American country, which was already struggling with its worst financial crisis in decades when the volcano awoke from a 79-year slumber."Our hotel is locked up. We have survived on what little money we had saved, but now it's all gone," said Herrera, one of 17,000 residents ordered to evacuate Banos, a town wedged into a narrow valley at the foot of the volcano's lush green slopes.
For nearly 80 years, the 16,553-foot Tungurahua provided the postcard backdrop for the now-deserted tourist town famed for its hot springs and trekking.
But in September, the pristine, snowcapped crater was stained black by a series of explosions of ash-laden vapor. Scientists warned Banos residents and 8,000 people in nearby hamlets and villages to be on alert for a possibly devastating eruption of lava.
By the time the order came to evacuate Oct. 16, thousands of people from the town and surrounding communities had already packed up and moved, hauling furniture and personal belongings with them. Most of the evacuees sought refuge with friends and family in other parts of the country.
The volcano has been illuminating the night sky with spectacular explosions of gas, ash and incandescent rocks -- just as it did in 1916, the beginning of a four-year eruptive process that hurled ash and hot stones down on Banos but spared it from lava.
Authorities have maintained an alert, warning that within days or weeks Tungurahua could erupt as it has done at least a dozen times since 1534. Officials say the volcano could remain active for months or years, keeping people from returning to their homes.
For struggling Ecuador, the exodus has become one more economic problem to deal with. Lost tourism revenue and abandoned agricultural production have already added up to millions of dollars, officials say.
The situation has been devastating for many evacuees.
Hundreds of residents have defied orders to stay out of the restricted zone, sneaking back to feed prized farm animals left behind and to plant small plots of corn and potatoes. Last month, hundreds surged past a military checkpoint five miles from the volcano while trying to return. Police used tear gas to force them back.
For about 1,200 of the poorest residents displaced by Tungurahua, the only places to turn were school buildings transformed into government shelters in Ambato, a city 20 miles northwest of the volcano and 75 miles south of the capital, Quito.
Herrera, owner of the Hotel Bolivar, had more resources. He moved his family to Riobamba, a town of 160,000 people about 30 miles southwest of Banos.
But now, with his savings exhausted, he needs a loan. He has had no luck obtaining one from banks that consider him a bad credit risk -- a category that applies to anyone whose property lies within potential reach of a Tungurahua eruption.
"We are not looking for a handout," Herrera said. "We want loans at market interest rates so we can get re-established and become productive again."
Others have already found ways to get back in business. In a Riobamba park, artisans from 53 evacuated families sell candy, wicker baskets and ceramics. Both foreign and Ecuadorean tourists have started to flock to the park, now known as the "Market of the Volcano's Ashes."
"We don't want to live off of charity. This work has helped improve our situation, economically, spiritually and psychologically," said Luis Alvarez, a Banos resident who helped organize the market. After the success of the first venture, another handicrafts market is being planned to re-create "another little piece of Banos," he said.
Gerardo Badillo, a Banos pharmacist, was able to salvage just enough supplies to open a new pharmacy in Chambo, a small town south of Riobamba.
"We have had to start over with nothing," he said, tears welling up in his eyes. "Our hearts are filled with pain remembering everything we left behind."