Mount Etna Photo: depositphotos
This week in Italy, two volcanoes have become active. The first volcano, Mount Etna, with one of its largest craters, Voragine, awakened on July 5th, ejecting ash and smoke columns up to 4,500 meters above sea level. Streams of molten lava also flowed down its slopes from 3,300 meters altitude.
This spectacle attracted many tourists who observed the volcano’s eruptions and the clouds of smoke rising above the mountain. Due to the large amount of volcanic ash, the Catania airport in Sicily was closed yesterday, but by Friday evening, it resumed operations, although only two flights per hour were departing.
As reported by: 9tv currently, the volcano’s activity is reported to be moderate, but Italian authorities have raised the alert level from green to yellow due to underground tremors, fearing that the situation could change abruptly.
Additionally, almost simultaneously with Etna, Mount Stromboli, located in the Tyrrhenian Sea on the Aeolian Islands archipelago near Sicily, also erupted. It is one of Europe’s most active volcanoes.
Stromboli Island is home to only a few hundred people. Tourists travel there from the mainland or Sicily by sea to observe the volcano. However, conditions are currently very hazardous.
The Italian Civil Protection Agency has declared a red alert for Stromboli, warning of potential worsening conditions. Minister of Civil Protection Nello Musumeci stated that authorities are closely monitoring the situation, preparing evacuation plans for emergencies, while the firefighting brigade has doubled its workforce on the island.
