In the fifth eruption in the island's southwest since 2021, lava was spewing from both the volcano and newly opened fissures in the ground, prompting the evacuation of the coastal town of Grindavík.
An aerial photo from Icelandic broadcaster RÚV showed lava setting homes on fire in the town where 4000 inhabitants had been told to leave their homes on Saturday night after a series of earthquakes warned that an eruption was imminent.
The volcanic eruption on the Reykjanes Peninsula, southwest of Reykjavik, then began at 7.57am, when the first lava gushed out of an elongated fissure a few hundred metres north of Grindavík.
Aerial footage from the Icelandic Coast Guard shows the proximity of the lava flow to the town of Grindavík. Measures are being taken to defend infrastructure. — President of Iceland (@PresidentISL) pic.twitter.com/fM0JEYetNAJanuary 14, 2024
Just a few hours later, the area was filled with a glowing red sea of lava.
Volcano expert Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson told RÚV after a helicopter flight over the area that the fissure had grown to a length of about a kilometre and is sending lava dangerously close to Grindavík.
"Lava is now flowing towards the town," the Icelandic weather authority Vedurstofa warned as authorities called on would-be disaster tourists not to consider making a trip to see the lava.
Then, around midday, the earth also opened up on the northern outskirts of Grindavík.
From there, the glowing red lava inched down the valley before setting at least two houses on fire.
Icelandic President Gudni Th Jóhannesson had said earlier on social media platform X that human lives were not in danger but that local infrastructure and possessions might be.
Grindavík had already been hit by the last volcanic eruption in the area in mid-December - not by the lava but by several earthquakes that announced the pending eruption.
This time too, the Icelandic meteorological authority recorded an intense series of earthquakes before the eruption.
The quakes caused deep cracks in the roads and other damage.
A few days ago, a worker fell into one of these fissures, according to local media reports.
The search for him has since been called off and he remains missing.
This time too, the weather authority recorded an intense series of earthquakes with more than 200 tremors before the eruption.
The authority warned that magma was in motion beneath the earth's surface and that the probability of an eruption was high.
The last eruption in the area took place on December 18, when lava initially gushed out of a fissure several kilometres long.
However, the eruption decreased significantly in intensity within a few days.
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