Ash to ash: Locals wipe out volcanic debris after fresh eruption of Mount Etna covers their town with debris
- Etna’s activity intensified earlier today when it spewed 300 meters of lava with a subsequent ash rain
- Residents in nearby villages, including Giarre, Fornazzo and Catania, were left to clean up the rubble
- The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology of Catania confirmed earlier today that activity has resumed
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Residents living in the shadow of the Etna were forced to sweep up volcanic debris after a fresh eruption covered their town with debris.
Etna’s activity intensified earlier today when it spewed 300m high lava with a volcanic rain on the villages in the area, including Giarre, Fornazzo and Catania in Sicily, Italy.
The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology of Catania has confirmed that ‘strombolic activity’ – volcanic eruptions with relatively light explosions – has resumed this morning.
Residents living in the shadow of the Etna were forced to sweep up volcanic debris after a fresh eruption covered their town with debris. In the photo: the woman fills up volcanic ash in Fornazzo
Etna’s activity intensified earlier today (photo) when it spewed 300 meters of lava with a subsequent rain of volcanic ash falling on nearby villages.
For more than a week, Etna regularly pelted lava, ash and volcanic rocks, while the nearby Catania airport was temporarily closed.
Residents in nearby towns have now been left to clean up the rubble in the aftermath that has constantly covered streets, cars and homes.
It is at 3,329 meters high and is the highest active volcano in Europe and the highest peak in Italy south of the Alps.
Previous eruptions have resulted in injuries, including in 2017, ten people, including a BBC news crew, were injured.
The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology of Catania has confirmed that there is ‘strombolic activity’ again this morning – volcanic eruptions with relatively light explosions (photo)
For more than a week, Etna regularly pelted lava, ash and volcanic rocks, while the nearby Catania airport was temporarily closed. In the photo: Man sweeps the ashes on the street in Giarre
Residents in nearby towns have now been left to clean up the rubble in the aftermath that has constantly covered streets, cars and homes. In the photo: Aftermath in Giarre (left) and Venerina (right)
Scientists have expressed concern that Etna slides in the Mediterranean Sea by as much as 14 mm each year.
This can cause a portion of the volcano to collapse into the water, which could obstruct the debris in the surrounding ocean and destroy waves.
The 700,000-year-old volcano is also the second most active on Earth after Hawaii’s Kilauea Mountain.
Located between the African and Eurasian tectonic plates, it generates almost constant eruptions of varying degrees.
Each year, it produces more than ten million tons of lava and more than 7 million tons of carbon dioxide, water and sulfur dioxide.
Scientists have expressed concern that Etna (pictured earlier today) is slowly sliding into the Mediterranean Sea by as much as 14 mm each year.
Residents in nearby towns and villages had earlier said it looked like it was raining rocks while a thick blanket covered the city (debris in Giarre earlier today)
It is at 3,329 meters high and is the highest active volcano in Europe and the highest peak in Italy south of the Alps. In the photo: the clean-up operation in Giarre
Its most severe eruption occurred in March 2017, when nearly a dozen people were injured.
But eruptions were recorded as early as 1500 BC, with a devastating eruption in 1169 that caused an earthquake that killed an estimated 15,000 people.
In 1992, the lava flowing down its slope threatened Zafferana, a city of 7,000 inhabitants, which is arguably the largest flank eruption in 300 years.
Soldiers used controlled explosions to divert the lava flow.