OSLO (Reuters) -A volcano in southwest Iceland erupted on Monday following weeks of intense earthquake activity, the country’s Meteorological Office said.
Fearing a significant outbreak on the Reykjanes peninsula, authorities had evacuated the nearly 4,000 inhabitants of the fishing town of Grindavik and closed the nearby Blue Lagoon geothermal spa.
“Warning: Eruption has started north of Grindavik by Hagafell,” the Met Office said on its website.
Images and livestreams by local news outlet RUV showed lava spewing from fissures in the ground.
A coast guard helicopter will be in the air shortly to confirm the exact location and size of the eruption, the Met Office said.
Reykjavik’s international airport, which is located nearby, remained open.
“At the moment, there are no disruptions to arrivals or departures at Keflavík Airport,” it said on its website.
The Reykjanes peninsula in recent years saw several eruptions in unpopulated areas, but the latest outbreak could pose a risk to the Grindavik town, authorities have said.
Reykjanes is a volcanic and seismic hot-spot southwest of the capital Reykjavik. In March 2021, lava fountains erupted spectacularly from a 500-750-metre-long (1,640-2,460-foot-long) fissure in the ground in the Fagradalsfjall volcanic system.
(Reporting by Terje Solsvik in Oslo and Chandni Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Leslie Adler and Sandra Maler)
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