Sicily's Catania airport closed after Etna volcano in southern Italy began spewing ash, lava

By Zeynep Katre Oran

ANKARA (AA) – An active volcano in southern Italy is once again spewing ash and lava, with a dust column reaching up to 8 kilometers (about 5 miles) high, forcing the Catania airport in Sicily to suspend flight operations on Tuesday, local media reported.

The Etna volcano, which is about 3 kilometers (nearly 1.9 miles) high and located on Sicily Island, erupted again, according to the Italian ANSA news agency.

Flights are temporarily halted at Catania International Airport, the company that operates it said in a statement, citing the ash cloud spreading into the atmosphere.

Some passengers were directed to nearby airports, the statement said.

According to Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), volcanic activity is intense, and ash emitted by Etna reached a height of approximately 8 kilometers (5 miles).

Etna Volcano, Europe's highest active volcano, has been experiencing frequent volcanic activity since early July.

The volcano remained silent until July of this year, after spewing ash and lava heavily in Dec. 2023.

*Writing by Merve Berker