A volcano in central Mexico has erupted sending debris thousands of feet into the air. El Popocatépetl is one of the most active volcanoes in Mexico, and erupts will relative frequency.
Pictures of the latest eruption show huge clouds of ash towering over the 17,802 foot peak. Footage of the eruption appears to show several explosions over the course of yesterday evening, when El Popocatépetl began erupting.
Ash clouds billowed about 3,200 feet (1,000 metres) over the volcano, which began erupting yesterday evening. It is only 43 miles from Mexico City, home to more than 21 million people. Overall, more than 30 million people live within 50km of the volcano.
El Popocatépetl has erupted fairly often – about 30 times in the last 700 years – but these have been relatively small in scale.
Plinian eruptions, which are characterised by violent explosions which catapult ash into the stratosphere, are much more rare with the last one at El Popocatépetl occurring around 800 AD.
El Popocatépetl
If such an eruption occurred today, it could cause widespread destruction, according to the US Geological Society (USGS).
“The last such eruption at Popocatepetl was around A.D. 800. The eruption destroyed nearby settlements and culminated in mudflows that blanketed the Puebla Valley. An eruption of this magnitude today would endanger hundreds of thousands of lives,” the USGS said on its website.
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 – Latest UK & World News Stories – Express.co.uk
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/ExpressUSNews and @expressusnews
