Volcano

The Fuego volcano in central Guatemala has begun shooting lava and columns of ash into the air, and authorities have raised the alert level in the area. The volcano overlooks the tourist city of Antigua and is one of Central America's most-active volcanoes. Guatemala's National Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology Institute said in a statement Saturday that Fuego shot ash 16,400 feet (5,000 meters) into the air. Lava flows reached up to 3,280 feet (1,000 meters)

The Fuego volcano in central Guatemala has begun shooting lava and columns of ash into the air, and authorities have raised the alert level in the area. The volcano overlooks the tourist city of Antigua and is one of Central America's most-active volcanoes. Guatemala's National Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology Institute said in a statement Saturday that Fuego shot ash 16,400 feet (5,000 meters) into the air. Lava flows reached up to 3,280 feet (1,000 meters)

MOUNT MERAPI, Indonesia — Indonesia warned yesterday that its most volatile volcano could erupt at any time and started evacuating some of the thousands of villagers living on the mountain’s slope. Mount Merapi has seen increased volcanic activity over the past week and officials have raised the alert level for the 9,737-foot-high mountain to the most urgent level, said government volcanologist Surono, who uses only one name. Also yesterday, a powerful earthquake hit off western Indonesia, briefly triggering a tsunami warning that sent thousands of panicked residents fleeing to high...

Increased earthquake activity has prompted scientists to raise the alert level for an Alaska volcano. The Alaska Volcano Observatory on Friday elevated the alert status for Iliamna (ill-ee-AHM'-nuh) Volcano, located on the west side of Cook Inlet, about 135 miles southwest of Anchorage. Officials in a release say earthquake activity has been increasing at the volcano over the last three months and is above background level. While a significant change, they say it's not certain if the earthquake activity is because of magna movement.

LONDON — An enormous ash cloud from a remote Icelandic volcano caused the biggest flight disruption since the 2001 terrorist attacks yesterday as it drifted over northern Europe and stranded travelers on six continents. Officials said it could take days for the skies to become safe again in one of aviation’s most congested areas. The cloud, floating miles above Earth and capable of knocking out jet engines, wrecked travel plans for tens of thousands of people, from tourists and business travelers to politicians and royals.

NAIROBI, Kenya -- A volcano erupted on the main island of the Comoros archipelago in the Indian Ocean early yesterday, sending thousands of people fleeing, officials said. No deaths or injuries were reported. Lava started flowing out of the 7,746-foot Mount Karthala at 1:30 a.m., hours after the volcano started spewing ash and dark smoke over Grand Comore, the largest of the three Comoros islands, said Bernadette Ninyaratunga of the United Nations Children's Fund. A team of specialists flew over the volcano to assess the dangers and the damage caused so far,...

The Chilean government says a volcano in southern Chile that began erupting about two weeks ago is becoming less active. That will allow 4,000 people who were evacuated near the volcano to return home. The cloud of ash had soared 7.5 miles (12 kilometers) over the Andean mountain range but has since shrunk to a quarter that size. The ash is still floating around the world and spurred the suspension Sunday of flights in South Africa. The eruption had suspended flights in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Australia and New Zealand.

REYKJAVIK, Iceland — A volcano in southern Iceland has erupted for the first time in almost 200 years, raising concerns that it could trigger a larger and potentially more dangerous eruption at a volatile volcano nearby. The eruption at the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, located near a glacier of the same name, shot ash and lava into the air, but scientists called it mostly peaceful. It occurred just before midnight Saturday at a fissure on a slope — rather than at the volcano’s summit — so scientists said there was no imminent danger that the glacier would melt and flood the area.

MOUNT ST. HELENS, Wash. -- Mount St. Helens vented a new column of steam yesterday from an area where a bulge of rock has been growing inside the volcano's crater. The plume rose several hundred feet above the 8,364-foot volcano, and a light wind slowly blew it toward the south-southeast. The steam emission followed an increase in earthquake activity over two days, with quakes of magnitude 2.4 occurring every two minutes until yesterday, when the vibrations were more frequent but weakened to a magnitude of 1 or less.

AMBAE ISLAND, Vanuatu -- A volcano pumping a huge plume of gas, steam, and ash into the atmosphere from a crater ringed with dead trees is unlikely to explode in a devastating eruption, a vulcanologist said yesterday, bringing applause from anxious islanders. About half of Ambae Island's 10,000 inhabitants have fled their huts built on Mount Manaro's jungle-covered slopes, and four ships are anchored offshore ready to evacuate the rest if necessary. But as he watched seismological readings on the Pacific island -- inspiration for the idyllic Bali Hai in James Michener's...

The warning level for a remote Alaska volcano has been raised after a new lava dome began forming, indicating the mountain could explode and send up an ash cloud that could threaten aircraft. The Alaska Volcano Observatory on Tuesday elevated the alert status for Cleveland Volcano. Officials say the new lava dome was spotted in the summit crater. The observatory says as of Monday, the dome was about 130 feet in diameter. There have been no eruptions since Dec. 25 and Dec. 29, which destroyed the earlier lava dome built up over the fall.

SEATTLE - As the search for four people on the slopes of Mount Rainier stretches into its second week, specialists say the rewards for the hardy few who attempt the summit of the 14,411-foot heavily glaciated volcano in winter are great - as are the dangers. "The surreal and sublime austerity of being up in the wilderness on the mountain is heightened in the winter," said Stefan Lofgren, mountaineering district ranger in charge of the climbing, search, and rescue and aviation programs at Mount Rainier National Park.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory has downgraded the commercial airliner alert level for a volcano in the Aleutian Islands, a day after a small explosion sent ash 15,000 feet into the air. Satellite images showed the ash cloud after remote Cleveland Mountain erupted early Thursday. The observatory said Friday that no new explosive activity has been observed. The threat has been downgraded from orange, representing a minor eruption, to yellow, meaning elevated unrest. Cleveland Mountain is a 5,675-foot peak on an uninhabited island 940 miles southwest of Anchorage.

ANCHORAGE - A volcano in Alaska's Aleutian Islands sent up an ash cloud yesterday that prompted scientists to increase the alert level for commercial aircraft traffic. The Alaska Volcano Observatory said satellite images at 4:02 a.m. Alaska time showed Cleveland Volcano had spewed ash 15,000 feet into the air in a cloud that moved east-southeast. US Geological Survey scientist-in-charge John Power called it a small explosion. "It's not expected to cause a disruption to big international air carriers," he said.

Officials say fast-moving mudflows streaming from the mouth of a volcano in eastern Indonesia have killed four villagers. About 1,000 others have fled their homes. Mount Gamalama, located in the Molucca Islands, sprang back to life this month with a powerful, non-fatal eruption. Government spokesman Yusuf Sunnya said Wednesday that days of heavy rains triggered flows of cold lava, rocks and other debris that slammed into villages near the base Tuesday night. He said four people were killed and more than a dozen others were hospitalized with injuries ranging from broken bones to...

Just five months after we met, I asked my boyfriend (now husband) to go to Maui, Hawaii, with me, figuring it would be a good way to really get to know him. Upping the ante, I had arranged for us to camp overnight at Mount Haleakala, the island's volcano. It was beyond magical: We were awestruck by the inky night sky, aglitter with stars. Heading back, we drove through Makawao, a funky town filled with galleries. In a shop window, I spotted three large, colorful, leaded-glass stars.

AMENABLE TO IT ALL: The family met at Castries, the capital.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory has downgraded the commercial airliner alert level for a volcano in the Aleutian Islands, a day after a small explosion sent ash 15,000 feet into the air. Satellite images showed the ash cloud after remote Cleveland Mountain erupted early Thursday. The observatory said Friday that no new explosive activity has been observed. The threat has been downgraded from orange, representing a minor eruption, to yellow, meaning elevated unrest. Cleveland Mountain is a 5,675-foot peak on an uninhabited...

The Tungurahua volcano in Ecuador is spewing out red-hot rocks and billowing coarse ash. The South American country's Geophysical Institute says the increased activity began Sunday afternoon. It says the volcano has thrown pyroclastic boulders up to a mile from the crater, and there have been at least four earthquakes in the area. The 16,480-foot (5,023-meter) volcano is in a sparsely populated area about 84 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of Ecuador's capital, Quito. It has been active since 1999.

Mexico's Popocatepetl volcano has spewed a burst of ash 3 miles (5 kilometers) into the air after breaking through a dome of lava. Mexico's National Disaster Prevention Center says Sunday's explosion continues a series of moderate eruptions from the 17,886-foot (5,450-meter) volcano 40 miles (65 kilometers) southeast of the Mexican capital. The center says the volcano has been emitting small but steady stream of steam and gas since Friday. Mexico City Civil Protection Director Elias Moreno told Foro Television that there were no reports of danger or of ash falling on...