4 days ago
Massive plume of ash, gas spews from Italy's Mount Etna
Volcanic vortex rings emerge from a new pit crater on the north side of the southeast crater of the Etna Volcano in Sicily, Italy, Friday, April 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Giuseppe Di Stefano)
Rome, Italy -- A huge plume of ash, gas and rock spewed forth Monday from Italy's Mount Etna, Europe's largest active volcano, after a portion of its southeastern crater likely collapsed, authorities said.
Images showed a massive grey cloud billow forth from the volcano on the island of Sicily, beginning about 11:24 am local time (0924 GMT), according to the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV).
Surveillance cameras showed 'a pyroclastic flow probably produced by a collapse of material from the northern flank of the Southeast Crater', the agency said.
A pyroclastic flow occurs when volcanic rock, ash and hot gasses surge from volcanos. They are extremely dangerous.
The explosive activity 'had transitioned to a lava fountain', INGV said, with the plume of ash expected to dissipate towards the southwest.
A red alert issued for aviation authorities said the height of the volcanic cloud was estimated at 6.5 kilometres (more than four miles).
The nearby Catania airport was still in operation.
