Posted in Iceland (country) Lifestyle Travel Travel Advice UK News Volcanoes Weather

Is it safe to travel to Iceland right now? Latest advice after volcano erupts

The North Atlantic island nation is on high alert after lava spewed across the Reykjanes Peninsula and smoke belched into the sky.

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Posted in Iceland (country) News UK News World

Tourists evacuated after Sundhnúkur volcano in Iceland erupts again

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A tourist hotspot in Iceland has been evacuated after a volcano erupted this morning.

The North Atlantic country is on high alert after lava spewed out of the Sundhnúkur volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula.

This is the ninth time the volcano has erupted since December 2023 and the country’s 12th seismic incident since 2021.

People have been evacuated in and around the town of Grindavik, including at the famous Blue Lagoon resort.

Volcano eruption in Iceland.
A huge fissure has opened up at the Sundhnúkur volcano, forcing people and tourists to flee from Grindavik (Picture: Public Defense Department of the State Police)

Footage shows thick smoke rising from the smoldering crater.

But despite the dramatic scenes, meteorologists said today’s eruption is a small one and buildings are safe.

Visitors from the Blue Lagoon resort – which welcomes around 3,500 people daily – and a nearby campsite, were told to move to safety.

Residents in the Vogar and Reykjanesbaer towns were told to keep windows shut due to a moving gas pollution cloud from the volcano, according to the Icelandic broadcaster RUV.

The air quality is being monitored, the local Met Office said.

Volcano eruption in Iceland.
Local authorities are monitoring the magma flow and gas clouds from the eruption (Picture: Iceland Met Office)

The magma opened up a large fissure measuring between 0.4 and 0.6 miles.

The Icelandic Met Office said: ‘The eruptive fissure is approximately 700 to 1000 m long. The fissure has been propagating to the north since the eruption started.

‘Lava is mostly flowing to the SE and is not approaching any infrastructure.’

Seismic activity was first spotted deep in the Earth at about 1.20am, when an ‘intense seismic swarm’ was detected.

Flights at the Keflavik airport have not been disrupted by the eruption – unlike in 2010 when the Eyjafjallajökull eruption grounded thousands of flights across Europe.

While Iceland is well prepared for seismic activity, it can take visitors by surprise.

Last year, Metro’s visit to the Blue Lagoon came to a sudden halt because of an eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula.

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