
Shocking footage has emerged showing tourists on Mount Etna running to escape a dangerous situation as a huge plume of ash spewed from the volcano's crater. Authorities say a section of the southeastern crater of the famous volcano in Sicily suddenly erupted shortly after 11am on Monday.
Tourists who were there for a visit were seen running for their lives as a thick cloud of ash spread behind them. The footage shows tense moments, but surprisingly, some of the visitors stopped to photograph the dramatic scene, despite the danger they were in.
Mount Etna, which rises to a height of about 3,300 meters, can be visited on tours organized by specialized guides, although some parts of it are also accessible independently. The Volcanic Ash Advisory Center briefly issued a red warning for air traffic after the ash cloud reached a height of about 6.5 kilometers.
Etna, considered the most active volcano on the European continent, had shown signs of increased activity during the night, with tremors that, according to experts, were precursors to the morning eruptions.
An American tourist, Jamie Boone from Washington, who was visiting the volcano at the time, told DailyMail.com that their tour guide warned them to leave immediately when the ash began to erupt. According to him, although there had been signs of activity all morning, no one expected the eruption to be so powerful and immediate.