Volcano erupts again on Iceland peninsula: Met office
state of emergency late Saturday as lava spewed from a new volcanic fissure on the Reykjanes peninsula, the fourth eruption to hit the area since December.
A «volcanic eruption has started between stora Skogfell and Hagafell on the Reykjanes Peninsula,» said a statement from the Icelandic Met Office (IMO). Live video images showed glowing lava and billowing smoke.
Iceland's Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management announced it had sent a helicopter to narrow down the exact location of the new fissure. The authority also said the police had declared a state of emergency due to the eruption.
According to the IMO, it occurred close to the same location as a previous eruption on February 8. Lava appeared to flow south towards the dykes built to protect the fishing village Grindavik, it said.
Lava was also flowing west, as it had on February 8, and the length of the fissure was estimated to be 2.9 kilometres (1.8 miles), said the IMO.
Minutes before the eruption, the agency had issued a statement saying that seismic activity indicated that there was an increased chance of an eruption.
On Friday, the IMO said that magma was accumulating under the ground in the area «which could end with a new magma intrusion and possibly an eruption». That could happen «with very little warning», it said.
Local media reported that Iceland's famed Blue Lagoon geothermal spa had been evacuated as well as Grindavik.
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