Yesterday afternoon, Guatemala’s Volcán de Fuego (Volcano of Fire), an active volcano near Antigua, Guatemala unexpectedly began erupting, causing panic and the forced evacuation of over 33 000 people. The eruption caused volcanic ash to fall more than half a kilometre down the mountain.

The volcano sits roughly 16km from the city of Antigua and is almost always active, however larger eruptions are rare. Since the eruption, experts have reported that explosions have also been coming from the volcano and lava has poured down over 600m of its slopes. Currenly, the most notable effects of the eruption are the massive ash clouds stretching nearly 3km into the clouds and causing rumbles audible from kilometres away.

Gustavo Chicna, a volcanologist with the National Institute of Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology, said that an orange alert, the second-highest, was issued to the general public and a red alert was in place closer to the volcano where parts of the surrounding countryside are “almost in total darkness”.

Guatemala’s disaster prevention agency has reported that over 1 500 families have been evacuated to temporary housing and the emergency has warned that flights may be affected.

Many residents who witnessed the eruption used their cellphones to the record the event and share it with the world.

[Source: Sky News, Mashable]