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Long-dormant volcano that came to life in Iceland

Volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula flared to life in the area’s first volcanic eruption in nearly 900 years.

A helicopter flies close to a volcanic eruption which began in Fagradalsfjall near the capital, Reykjavik. [Vilhelm Gunnarsson/Getty Images]
Published On 21 Mar 2021

A long-dormant volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland flared to life on Friday night, spilling lava down two sides in that area’s first volcanic eruption in nearly 900 years.

The glow from the lava could be seen from the outskirts of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, which is about 32km (20 miles) away.

The Department of Emergency Management said it was not anticipating evacuations because the volcano is in a remote valley, about 2.5km (1.5 miles) from the nearest road.

There had been signs of a possible eruption recently, with earthquakes occurring daily for the past three weeks.

But volcanologists were still taken by surprise because the seismic activity had calmed down before the eruption.

On Saturday, experts said the volcano appeared to be subsiding and posed no danger to people.

On Friday the Icelandic Meteorological Office announced a volcano, located southwest of the capital, Reykjavik, erupted after thousands of small earthquakes in the area in recent weeks. [Vilhelm Gunnarsson/Getty Images]
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Lava flows from a volcano in Reykjanes Peninsula,
Lava flows from the volcano in Reykjanes Peninsula. [Cat Gundry-Beck/Reuters]
Icelandic coastguard members inspect the lava flowing from the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano west of the capital, Reykjavik. [Handout/Icelandic Coast Guard via AFP]
Scientists getting ready for a helicopter flight to the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano. The Fagradals Mountain volcano had been dormant for 6,000 years, and the Reykjanes Peninsula had not seen an eruption of any volcano in 781 years. [Handout/ Icelandic Coast Guard via AFP]
Rescue personnel work at the rescue team station in Grindavik, Iceland, during the eruption of the volcano near Fagradalsfjall, a mountain on the Reykjanes Peninsula. There had been signs of a possible eruption recently, with earthquakes occurring daily for the past three weeks. [VF.IS via Reuters]
Volcanologists were still taken by surprise because the seismic activity had calmed down before the eruption. [Handout/ Icelandic Coast Guard via AFP]
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The glow from the lava could be seen from the outskirts of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, which is about 32km (20 miles) away. [VF.IS via Reuters]