(Reykjavik) A volcano erupted on the Reykjanes peninsula in southwest Iceland on Thursday, the sixth such eruption since December, authorities said.
“An eruption has started on Sundhnuksgigarod,” the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) said in a statement, adding that it began at 21:26 (local time and GMT) after a series of earthquakes.
In live video footage shot at night, lava seeps out of a long fissure, illuminating smoke rising into the sky.
The IMO said it was not yet able to establish the length of the crack.
This is the sixth eruption in the region since December. It comes after another that lasted more than three weeks from the end of May on the same Reykjanes peninsula.
Icelandic media reported that the nearby fishing village of Grindavik was being evacuated, as it had been during previous eruptions, but did not provide details on the number of people present.
The Reykjanes Peninsula had not erupted for eight centuries until March 2021. Others occurred in August 2022 and in July and December 2023. Volcanologists have warned that the region’s seismic activity has entered a new era.
Iceland is home to 33 active volcanic systems, more than any other European country.