Ash to ashes: Locals sweep up volcanic debris after Mount Etna eruption covers their city in rubble
- Etna’s activity intensified earlier today when it spewed lava at 1,000 feet with a subsequent ash rain
- Residents of the nearby villages, including Giarre, Fornazzo and Catania, have been left to clean up the debris
- The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology of Catania confirmed that activity has resumed earlier in the day
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Residents living in the shadow of Mount Etna have been forced to clean up volcanic debris after a new eruption covered their city with rubble.
Etna’s activity intensified earlier today when it spewed lava at 300 meters with a subsequent rain of volcanic ash that fell on nearby villages, including Giarre, Fornazzo and Catania in Sicily, Italy.
The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology of Catania confirmed that this morning there was a resumption of “strombolian activity” – volcanic eruptions with relatively mild blasts.
Residents living in the shadow of Mount Etna have been forced to clean up volcanic debris after another eruption covered their city with rubble. Pictured: Woman sweeping up volcanic ash in Fornazzo
Etna’s activity intensified earlier in the day (pictured) when it spewed lava at 1,000 feet with a subsequent rain of volcanic ash falling on nearby villages
For over a week, Mount Etna has been regularly discharging lava, ash and volcanic rock, and nearby Catania Airport has been temporarily closed.
Residents of nearby villages have now been left to clean up the debris in the aftermath that has constantly covered streets, cars and houses.
With a towering height of 3,329 meters, it is the highest active volcano in Europe and the highest peak in Italy south of the Alps.
Previous eruptions have resulted in injuries, including 10 people, including a BBC news crew, were injured in 2017.
The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology of Catania confirmed that this morning there was a resumption of ‘strombolian activity’ – volcanic eruptions with relatively mild blasts – (photo)
For over a week, Mount Etna has been regularly discharging lava, ash and volcanic rock, and nearby Catania Airport has been temporarily closed. Pictured: Man sweeps the ashes on the street in Giarre
Residents of nearby villages have now been left to clean up the debris in the aftermath that has continuously covered streets, cars and houses. Pictured: Aftermath in Giarre (left) and Venerina (right)
Scientists have expressed concern that Mount Etna slowly slips as much as 14 mm into the Mediterranean Sea every year.
This can cause part of the volcano to plunge into the water, risking debris entering the surrounding ocean and potentially devastating waves.
The 700,000-year-old volcano is also the second most active on Earth, after Mount Kilauea in Hawaii.
Located between the African and Eurasian tectonic plates, it generates near-constant eruptions to varying degrees.
Every year it produces more than tens of million tons of lava and more than 7 million tons of carbon dioxide, water and sulfur dioxide.
Scientists have expressed concern that Mount Etna (pictured earlier today) is slowly sliding into the Mediterranean Sea as much as 14mm a year
Residents in nearby towns and villages previously said it looked like it was raining rocks while a thick blanket of ash covered the town (debris in Giarre earlier in the day)
With a towering height of 3,329 meters, it is the highest active volcano in Europe and the highest peak in Italy south of the Alps. Pictured: the clean-up operation in Giarre
The most serious recent eruption occurred in March 2017, when nearly a dozen people were injured.
But eruptions have been recorded as far back as 1500 BC, with a devastating eruption in 1169 that triggered an earthquake that killed an estimated 15,000 people.
In 1992, the lava pouring down the slope threatened Zafferana, a town of 7,000 inhabitants, in what is believed to be the most extensive flank eruption in 300 years.
Soldiers used controlled explosions to divert the lava flow.