1000’s of vacationers have stormed the snowy slopes of Sicily’s Mount Etna in current weeks, congesting roads and obstructing the paths of rescue crews, the Italian authorities stated, regardless of their efforts to maintain individuals safely away from explosive lava flows.
Mount Etna repeatedly erupts, and it has drawn vacationers for many years. However the newest eruption, which started on Feb. 8, has drawn so many photographers, hikers and nature aficionados that it has raised a refrain of warnings and orders from native Italian officers.
Salvo Cocina, Sicily’s regional civil safety chief, in a assertion Sunday described a “fixed stream” of about 1,000 individuals, in addition to “wild parking on the perimeters of tight streets” that created an deadlock for emergency autos.
“With the darkish, the chance of falling and sinking into the snow will increase proportionally with the rise of individuals,” he stated.
“Etna is giving us a wide ranging spectacle: A lava stream has reached our territory,” Mayor Fabio Mancuso of Adrano warned his city close to the foot of Etna a day earlier. “Lots of people try to get nearer to admire this pure phenomenon, however this can be very harmful!”
He stated the lava colliding with snow might trigger violent explosions when the snow melts quickly, leading to high-pressure steam that may hurl rocks and lava an incredible distance. “A mortal hazard for anyone close to the stream!” he stated in a social media submit. “Because of this I’ve signed an order forbidding anybody from approaching the lava entrance.”
In Ragalna, one other group on Etna’s slopes, the authorities ordered everybody to remain a minimum of 500 meters, or almost 550 yards, away from the lava stream.
However because the authorities issued orders, individuals nonetheless seemed to be importing photographs and movies taken from the neighborhood of the lava flows. Movies shared by the corporate AccuWeather confirmed individuals snowboarding down a snowy slope whereas lava smoldered and molten chunks of fabric tumbled down within the distance. In a single clip, the silhouette of a sightseer’s physique will be seen towards crimson lava cascading not far within the background.
“Some individuals have independently managed to strategy sure areas, however native municipalities have now imposed restrictions to forestall entry to websites affected by the eruption for security causes,” stated Giulia Campisi, a spokeswoman for a volcano tour company, Go-Etna.
Ms. Campisi stated in an e-mail that the eruption was affecting Etna’s western flank, the place fewer vacationers know the paths. “To achieve the lava stream on this notably chilly winter,” she stated, “you will need to stroll for a very long time in deep snow.”
Go-Etna has not been taking vacationers on to the lava flows, she stated, including that it was abiding by native restrictions and security measures. She additionally cited the hazard that happens when sizzling lava meets frigid snow.
“In some deeper spots, this will trigger a right away (and actually EXPLOSIVE) evaporation of the snow, ensuing within the projection of sizzling stones, like bullets all over the place,” she stated. “Occasions like these can take even consultants without warning.”
Stefano Branca, the director of the Nationwide Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, known as the exercise a “typical summit eruption.” He added, “Solely individuals who come inside a couple of meters from the lava stream will be in peril as the warmth of the lavas may cause small hydromagmatic explosions attributable to the fast melting of the snow.”
Elisabetta Povoledo contributed reporting.