Videos show people fleeing as Mount Etna erupts, Italy
Footage captured on June 2, 2025, shows people fleeing as an eruption at Mount Etna’s Southeast Crater produces pyroclastic flow and an ash plume up to 6.5 km (21 325 feet).
#Etna 2025 suite de l’éruption pic.twitter.com/95sZiVHGbM
— Aurelien Pouzin (@aurelienpouzin) June 2, 2025
The eruption was preceded by a gradual increase in volcanic tremor amplitude beginning at 22:00 UTC on June 1, with high values recorded by 00:50 UTC. A sudden shift in monitored parameters occurred at 00:39 UTC, followed by visible Strombolian explosions at approximately 01:50 UTC.
In response, the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, Etna Observatory (INGV-OE), progressively raised the Aviation Color Code, from Green to Yellow at 01:23 UTC, Orange at 02:02 UTC, and to Red from 03:32 to 06:39 UTC, citing increasing seismic amplitude and ongoing explosive activity.
Satellite data initially detected no volcanic ash, but cloud observations indicated water vapor and sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions drifting southwest. At 06:59 UTC, the Toulouse Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) reported a weak ash plume reaching 5.5 km (18 000 feet), moving at approximately 20 km/h (12 mph). By 09:18 UTC, plume altitude increased to 6.5 km (21 300 feet), prompting INGV-OE to raise the Aviation Color Code back to Red.
At 09:24 UTC, surveillance imagery confirmed a pyroclastic flow on the northern flank of the Southeast Crater, likely generated by structural collapse. Preliminary analysis indicates the flow remained confined within the Valle del Leone. Simultaneously, explosive activity transitioned into sustained lava fountaining.
#Etna Collassa porzione del cratere, grosso flusso piroclastico pic.twitter.com/0KopQy0ZtY
— Local Team (@localteamit) June 2, 2025
Video footage recorded during the eruption shows individuals in the vicinity of Mount Etna reacting to the sudden pyroclastic flow.
Some are seen walking or running away from the advancing ash cloud produced by the pyroclastic flow, while others pause to film or ascend to higher ground for a clearer view. The dense column of volcanic ash rises rapidly behind them, partially obscuring the summit area as it expands.
There are no reports of casualties.
#Etna @CNEWS @Le_Figaro @leJDD @Europe1
— Aurelien Pouzin (@aurelienpouzin) June 2, 2025
Fascinant pic.twitter.com/mp8tbcYhxl
Read more about the eruption:
Strong Strombolian eruption, pyroclastic flow at Mount Etna, Italy
June 2, 2025
A sharp increase in volcanic tremor preceded a new Strombolian eruption at Mount Etna, Italy, early on June 2, 2025, with ash and SO2 clouds drifting southwest.
Featured image credit: Aurelien Pouzin (stillshot from the video)
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Are these people crazy?! Standing so close to a volcanic eruption?! Wow.