A volcanic eruption took place near Iceland’s capital city Reykjavik at 8:45PM GMT on March 19, 2021. The eruption took place from Fagradalsfjall Mountain after 800 years.
According to Iceland Meteorological Office (IMO), an earthquake of 3.1 magnitude was recorded 1.2km from Fagradalsfjall few hours prior to the volcanic eruption. Hot molten Lava was seen erupting from Fagradalsfjall and covered an area of around one square kilometre. The size of the affected area could be roughly estimated to the size of 200 football fields combined together.
However, the administration advised the locals to remain indoors and keep doors and windows locked to prevent exposure to the volcanic gases.
The IMO shared some visuals of the volcanic eruption on its official Twitter handle.
A new video of the eruption at Geldingardalur valley in Reykjanes peninsula. Taken from the Coast Guard helicopter. #Reykjanes #Eruption #Fagradalsfjall pic.twitter.com/B862heMzQL
— Icelandic Meteorological Office – IMO (@Vedurstofan) March 19, 2021
Iceland had previously experienced a volcanic eruption at Eyjafjallajokull in 2010. Unlike the current eruption a huge ash cloud had erupted back then. The incident had forced hundreds of Icelanders to shift from their homes and halted thousands of flights.
However, the recent explosion is not expected to erupt ash or smoke like the 2010 disaster.
(With inputs from Times Now)
Ms Kalinga