Volcano entered a phase of explosive activity on the night of Wednesday to Thursday in the Reccianes peninsula, in the southwestern part of Icelanda phenomenon recorded for the seventh time since last December, the Icelandic Meteorological Service announced.

“An explosion started in Sundsnukággar at 23:14 (local time; 01:14 Greek time),” the Icelandic weather service said in a bulletin.

Live video shows lava gushing from a long fissure, the size of which has not been determined at this stage.

Asked about this by the Icelandic public radio RAS2, an expert of the meteorological service of Iceland, Benedikt Ofegsson, emphasized that so far no infrastructure is threatened.

A civil protection helicopter was expected to fly over the area, carrying scientists who will make a first assessment of the size of the explosion.

The lava flows are not moving in the direction of the nearby fishing village of Grindavik, however, the community is in the process of hastily evacuating residents, as well as hotel guests in the area.

This is the seventh consecutive volcanic eruption in Iceland since December. It was noted after another at the end of August in the same area, on the Reykjavík peninsula, where the international airport of the capital Reykjavík is located.

The Reccianes peninsula had not experienced a volcanic eruption for eight centuries, until March 2021. New ones followed in August 2022, July and December 2023. Volcanologists warn that seismic activity has entered a new era.

A total of 33 active volcanic systems are found in Iceland, more than in any other European country.