Massive plume of ash, gas spews from Italy’s Mount Etna
Italy’s Mount Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe, has started to erupt, sending scores of panicked tourists running for safety. See the video.
Europe
Don't miss out on the headlines from Europe. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A huge plume of ash, gas and rock spewed forth Monday from Italy’s Mount Etna, Europe’s largest active volcano, but authorities said there was no current danger to the population.
Images showed a massive grey cloud billowing forth from the volcano on the island of Sicily, beginning about 11:24am local time (7:00pm AEST), 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 volcanoes. 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.
The president of the region of Sicily, Renato Schifani, said experts had assured him there was “no danger for the population”, with the flow not having passed the Valley of the Lions, an area frequented by tourists.
Videos posted on social media appeared to show tourists hurrying down the side of the volcano, some taking photos, but AFP could not determine their authenticity.
“The partial collapse of the Southeast Crater, which generated an impressive eruptive cloud several kilometres high and a pyroclastic flow, is a phenomenon that we follow with extreme caution,” Schifani said.
The head of the regional civil protection unit, Salvo Cocina, recommended that tourists avoid the area “in consideration of the potential evolution of the phenomenon”.
A red alert issued for aviation authorities said the height of the volcanic cloud was estimated at 6.5 kilometres.
The nearby Catania airport was still in operation.
Originally published as Massive plume of ash, gas spews from Italy’s Mount Etna
‘Watched’ by a rapist: Harrods billionaire ‘spied’ on customers
A former bodyguard for the late Harrods billionaire Mohamed Al Fayed, whose son had an affair with the late Princess Diana, has claimed he spied on customers using changing rooms.
Australian High Commission backflips on cricket soiree ban
Australia’s High Commission in London have backtracked on the rules around their exclusive event for the men’s cricket team after making a controversial call about who’s allowed in.
Ex-DJ, erotic writer wife tied to ‘Russia’s Pearl Harbour’
Russia is on the hunt for a former DJ and his erotic-novel writing wife over a Ukraine drone attack that is said to have wiped out $11bn in Vladimir Putin’s war planes.
‘Aware of the dilemma’: furore over Mary and Fred’s royal yacht
Queen Mary stepped out in shorts as warm weather, and sailing season, ramps up in Denmark. The Aussie born royal is under fire for her upcoming cruise on the fuel-guzzling royal ship.
Ukraine blows up vital Russian bridge in fresh triumph
Kyiv’s forces exploded a key Russian bridge as Moscow said it was wrong to expect a quick breakthrough in Ukraine talks.
Howzat: the cheeky way England beat West Indies to the oval
England’s cricket team was on a roll before they even set foot on the pitch, resorting to innovative means to beat London’s traffic gridlock for the third one-day match against the West Indies.