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Europe’s most active volcano Mount Etna erupted May 21, 2023, forcing flights from eastern Sicily’s largest city Catania to be grounded due to a lack of visibility. Catania was hit hard by the falling ash following the eruption, according to reports.
No injuries were reported amid monitoring by National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Italy, which recorded evidence of an increase in tremor activity in recent days, reported the United Kingdom news website, Metro.
“Update #Etna. Flight operations remain suspended until tomorrow morning, Monday May 22 at 9 am or in any case until safety conditions are restored. Go to the airport only if the flight schedule is confirmed. Info with airlines,” Catania airport had tweeted.
The operations were later poised to resume around 9am on May 22, 2023.
Residents of Adrano and Biancavilla reported hearing loud booms from the volcano early on May 21. Italy’s Civil Protection Agency sent out an alert on May 18, warning of ‘sudden’ variations of the volcano’s activity, reported news outlet WION.
The weather over Mount Etna was fairly cloudy and rainy on May 21, making it much more difficult than usual to spot the spectacular displays of lava pouring from the volcano.
Mount Etna is in an almost constant state of activity and it’s considered a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Site.
The volcano’s height increased by over 30 metres following a six-month period of activity. This sudden growth spurt is the result of about 50 eruptions at the southeastern crater since February 16, 2021. The height grew due to the amount of volcanic material it spewed, reported news website Space.com.
The youngest and most active of Etna’s four summit craters — the southeastern crater — is now the tallest part of the volcano, towering 3,357 m above sea level.
The is the tallest it has been in recorded history, according to the National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology.