Editing Arenal Volcano (section)

===July 29, 1968===
[[File:CostaRica Arenal Volcano 1968Flow (pixinn.net).jpg|thumb|left|Arenal in 2014, viewed from the old 1968 lava flow.]]
On Monday, July 29, 1968, at 7:30 am, the Arenal Volcano suddenly and violently erupted. The eruptions continued unabated for several days, burying over {{Convert|15|km2||abbr=|sp=us}} under rocks, lava and ash. When it was finally over, the eruptions had killed 87 people and buried 3 small villages – Tabacón, Pueblo Nuevo and San Luís – and affected more than {{Convert|232|km2||abbr=|sp=us}} of land. Crops were spoiled, property was ruined, and large numbers of livestock were killed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.arenal.net/arenal-volcano-1968-eruption.htm |title=Arenal Volcano 1968 eruption |publisher=Arenal.net |access-date=2015-06-19}}</ref>

At the height of its ferocious activity, the volcano flung giant rocks – some weighing several tons – more than a kilometer (half a mile) away at a rate of {{Convert|600|m/s|ft/s mph|abbr=|sp=us}}.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Alvarado Induni |first1=Guillermo |title=El devastador despertar del volcán Arenal en 1968 |url=https://www.nacion.com/ancora/el-devastador-despertar-del-volcan-arenal-en-1968/EG5QBTRSLVDEJBRE3GIGZWJHXQ/story/ |website=nacion.com |date=July 28, 2018 |publisher=La Nación |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> These explosions would go on to form three new active craters.

As the three towns were destroyed on the western side of the volcano, a town by the name of El Borio on the east side was untouched and unharmed. It is a popular myth that after the volcano ceased to erupt, El Borio was renamed La Fortuna, which means "The Fortune", referring to its luckiness that the volcano erupted to the west and not the east.  However, the town was renamed La Fortuna by its residents before the 1968 eruption. "The Fortune" refers to the flat, fertile lands in the area, which are unlike the rough, mountainous terrain which surrounds most of the Arenal volcano.