A volcano erupted in Iceland; The lava reached the evacuated town. Watch - voila! tourism

A volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula erupts in Iceland, 14 January 1/Photo: Reuters

Spectacular views of a volcano erupted Sunday afternoon after hundreds of earthquakes shook the Reykjanes peninsula in southwest Iceland, causing lava to flow to reach the fishing town of Grindavik, which was evacuated for the second time in two months after four "quiet" decades.

Videos posted online show fountains of magma and smoke emitted and splitting the ground over a wide area. Several homes were damaged, but "no one is in mortal danger, although infrastructure may be at risk," Icelandic President Godni Johansson said on social network X, adding that there were no flight disruptions.

The eruption began early yesterday north of the town of Grindavík, which just hours earlier had been evacuated amid a swarm of seismic activity, according to authorities who have built barriers of soil and rock in recent weeks to try to prevent lava from reaching Grindavik, about 40 kilometers southwest of the capital Reykjavik. However, the latest eruption has undermined the city's defense efforts.

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Hundreds of earthquakes shook the Reykjanes peninsula and preceded an eruption near the town of Grindavik/Reuters

Fifth eruption since 2021

According to Reuters, it was the second volcanic eruption on the Reykjanes Peninsula in less than a month and the fifth eruption since 2021.

Last month, an eruption began in the Svartsengi volcanic system on December 18, following the general evacuation a month earlier of Grindavik's 4,000 residents and the closure of the Blue Lagoon, one of the country's most popular tourist attractions. More than 100 Grindavik residents have returned home in recent weeks before Saturday's renewed evacuation order.

Iceland has more than 30 active volcanoes, making the island in northern Europe a major destination for volcano tourism – a niche segment that attracts thousands of thrill-seekers. In 2010, ash clouds from eruptions at the Eyafjallajokull volcano in the south of the country spread across large parts of Europe, grounding some 100,000 flights and forcing hundreds of Icelanders to evacuate their homes. Unlike Eifiatlajokull, the Reykjanes volcano systems are not trapped under glaciers and are therefore unlikely to cause similar ash clouds.

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