Explosion on Sicily’s Mount Etna volcano injures 10, including tourists

Sicily’s Mount Etna volcano unleashed an explosion Thursday, hurling molten rocks and steam that rained down on tourists, journalists and a scientist who scrambled to escape the barrage. Ten people were reported injured. The tourists, who were drawn to Etna to observe the spectacle of the active volcano erupting, were caught by surprise when its flowing magma hit thick snow, causing a phreatic explosion that rained rock and other material down upon them.
Authorities say about 35 tourists were on the volcano when the explosion occurred around midday, and that the guides who accompanied them helped bring them to safety. Umberto Marino, president of the Italian Alpine Club chapter in Catania, said he was travelling up the volcano in a snowcat when injured people started running in his direction.

“The material thrown into the air fell back down, striking the heads and bodies of people who were closest,” Marino told the Catania Today website.
According to Italian news agency ANSA, four people including three German tourists were hospitalized, mostly with head injuries. None of the injuries was listed as grave. Italy’s volcanology institute said the explosion took place at about 2,700 metres above sea level, putting the tourists at more than 500 metres below the base of the newest southeast Mount Etna crater, where the lava flow originated.

Mount Etna has been active for the past two days, creating a visual spectacle as it spews lava and ash into the air. A new lava flow started from the southeastern crater on Wednesday, and was advancing with a temperature above 1,000 C in an area covered by snow, creating the explosion. Thousands of tourists each year visit Etna, one of the world’s most active volcanoes located on the eastern coast of Sicily. Eruptions occur frequently, although incidents that injure tourists are rare. The volcanology institute said it was continuing to monitor the situation.
Source: TheStar