Volcano erupts in south west Iceland after weeks of activity

A volcane has erupted on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula, turning the sky orange and prompting the country’s civil defense to be on high alert.

The eruption appears to have occurred about 2.4 miles from the town of Grindavik, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said.

As the eruption spread, magma, or semi-molten rock, could be seen spewing along the ridge of a hill.

“The magma flow seems to be at least a hundred cubic meters per second, maybe more. So this would be considered a big eruption in this area at least,” Vidir Reynisson, head of Iceland’s Civil Protection and Emergency Management told the public broadcaster, RUV.

In November, police evacuated the town of Grindavik after strong seismic activity in the area damaged homes and raised fears of an imminent eruption.

Iceland sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic and averages an eruption every four to five years.

The most disruptive in recent times was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which spewed huge clouds of ash into the atmosphere and grounded flights across Europe for days because of fears ash could damage airplane engines.

(This story is being updated)