Pyroclastic Flows from Mt. Etna Send Tourists Fleeing Down its Slopes
Meanwhile, a glacier collapse in Switzerland shows mankind is more at the mercy of regional geology and its quirks than it is from “global warming.”
Mount Etna, Europe’s largest and most active volcano, erupted spectacularly on Monday, sending a massive cloud of ash and volcanic material high into the sky above Sicily.
The eruption began with a sudden and powerful explosion from the volcano’s South-East Crater. This event triggered a pyroclastic flow (an avalanche of hot lava blocks, ash, gas, and other volcanic debris) that raced down the volcano’s slopes, creating dramatic scenes captured by webcams and tourists in the area.
The Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre Toulouse quickly issued a “code red” Monday morning as volcanic ash began falling over the tourist haven.
The agency had warned in its initial update that the volcano was experiencing “strong strombolian activity.”
Wild footage being shared widely on social media showed terrified visitors fleeing down along a path on the flank of the vast volcano when the lava first started to overflow.
Another clip shared by a trekking guide showed the smoke thickening as it rose in the background.
Ash plumes rose at least 4 miles, according to the advisory center.
NOW – Mount Etna erupts, sending tourists fleeing for their lives as the smoke plume rises.pic.twitter.com/YfPUyld5Fi
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) June 2, 2025
Fortunately, the nearby towns were not endangered.
The area of danger was confined to the summit of Etna, which was closed to tourists as a precaution, according to Stefano Branca, an INGV official in Catania.
Sicily’s president, Renato Schifani, said lava flows emitted in the eruption had not passed the natural containment area, “and posed no danger to the population.”
Meanwhile, in Switzerland, the village of Blatten in the Lötschental valley was devastated when a massive section of the Birch Glacier collapsed, unleashing millions of cubic meters of ice, rock, and mud onto the settlement below.
This catastrophic event buried approximately 90% of the village, flattening homes and infrastructure, and leaving the area almost entirely unrecognizable beneath a thick layer of debris.
Rescue teams with search dogs and thermal drone scans have continued looking for a missing 64-year-old man but have found nothing. Local authorities suspended the search on Thursday afternoon, saying the debris mounds were too unstable for now and warned of further rockfalls.
With the Swiss army closely monitoring the situation, flooding worsened during the day as vast mounds of debris almost two kilometers across clogged the path of the River Lonza, causing a huge lake to form amid the wreckage and raising fears that the morass could dislodge.
Water levels have been rising by 80 centimetres an hour from the blocked river and melting glacier ice, Stephane Ganzer, head of the security division for the Valais canton, told reporters.
…Nearby, the road ran along the valley before ending abruptly at the mass of mud and debris now blanketing her own village.
🇨🇭#Switzerland #blatten #landslide
🎞️1 Pomona – Flight over the Birch Glacier near the Kleines Nesthorn in Blatten (Lötschental)
🎞️2 Mud and rocks slide down a mountain after the Birch glacier partially collapsed, covering most of the village of Blatten, Switzerland on May 28,… pic.twitter.com/5O5II73DvT— News 🛰️ (@EUFreeCitizen) May 29, 2025
And while climate cultists are busy pointing to “global warming,” I will once again note we are in an era of recovery from the last Ice Age. Additionally, glacier growth is impacted by regional conditions.
For example, some glaciers in the Karakoram mountain range, spanning the borders of Pakistan, India, and China, have been observed to gain mass in recent years. Satellite imaging between 1999 and 2008 showed that these glaciers grew by approximately 0.36 to 0.72 feet per year.
Additionally, Jakobshavn Isbrae, Greenland’s fastest-flowing glacier, thickened and advanced from 2016 to 2019. This change was linked to a temporary cooling of ocean currents due to natural climate variability (the North Atlantic Oscillation).
In conclusion, mankind is more at the mercy of regional geology and its quirks than it is from “global warming” and small changes in the concentration of the life-essential gas, carbon dioxide.
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Comments
“The agency had warned in its initial update that the volcano was experiencing “strong strombolian activity.””
Last time I had strong strombolian activity it turned out to be norovirus.
3 wieners, all the way. Wait one hour.
Now that’s strong Stromboli activity.
Etna Krabappel? 🙂
Flight is a natural response, so give them credit for making the attempt.
But once the flow has you in its sights, you’re gone.
I am curious if there were any advance warnings.
Etna is considered an ‘active’ volcano. While it’s never really ‘dormant,’ there’s been an increase in activity dating back to at least March. These more significant pyroclastic flows happen every 2/3-years.
There’s a certain Darwin Award tendency to somebody who says, “Hey, kids. Let’s go see the erupting volcano.” Clark Griswold, call the office. We have a sequel to the Vacation series.
No risk, no reward.
Even professionals, the people tasked with monitoring volcanoes, can be caught off guard. David A. Johnston, tasked with monitoring Mt. St. Helens, was killed at what was considered a “safe” outpost because St. Helens did the unexpected and erupted laterally.
Life is a risk. I would risk a venture to Mt. Etna playing the odds that are in my favor.
THERE IS GLOBAL WARMING
and
Cooling
and
In between
the left has once again won the battle and pretty damn near the war when it comes to climate politics
environmental justice may get scorned and eye rolled
but its the basis of so many “work arounds” by the left when it comes to laws and racial/ism “justice” that common sense is pushed aside
the black matriarchy ..courtesy of the welfare state>>>biden>>>>gop cowardice
now runs the left in the EU and of course in the USA
I’m sure lefties will trip over themselves saying that climate change caused this, this causes climate change, or both. 🙄
Well, it does cause climate change. Volcanoes pump tons of debris into the atmosphere blocking the sun. But a small eruption like this has no noticeable impact.
PyroClastastic. What would Nelson Mandela Muntz say ?
Like any reasonable person, I blame trump.
(Nelson: haha!)