A volcano has erupted in Iceland, forcing thousands of people to evacuate. Iceland’s Meteorological Office confirmed the eruption on Monday after weeks of intense earthquake activity.
Now 4,000 people have evacuated their homes in the fishing town of Grindavik in the country’s southwest. The nearby Blue Lagoon geothermal spa has also shut down.
The meteorological office issued a “warning” following the tremor on Monday night and said: “Eruption has started north of Grindavik by Hagafell.”
Shocking footage shows the eruption at the Sundhjuka crater illuminate the wintry night sky with explosions of magma.
Following the quake local police have warned residents to not go near the area.
Iceland Police said in a statement: “An eruption has begun. We ask people not to be in front of the responders and not to go in the direction of the eruption. It is important that roads and other things are as accessible as possible.”
We’ll be bringing you the very latest updates, pictures and video on this breaking news story.
For the latest news and breaking news visit: /news
Stay up to date with all the big headlines, pictures, analysis, opinion and video on the stories that matter to you.
Follow our social media accounts here on facebook.com/DailyExpress and @daily_express
