Etna experiences a paroxysmal eruption from the Voragine crater, sending volcanic ash several kilometers into the sky.
In the afternoon, Strombolian activity at the Voragine summit crater escalated into a paroxysmal volcanic eruption. By 17:00 UTC, the VAAC Toulouse had recorded volcanic ash reaching an altitude of 4,600 meters. At that point, the eruption was still intensifying. The ash cloud is currently expected to rise significantly higher. The air traffic alert status has been upgraded to “red.” The volcanic ash drifted southeast, away from Catania airport, but flight operations could still be affected.