Activity on Etna “increased very suddenly”, the institute said, noting that the episode produced 300- to 400m lava jets and an eruption column loaded with rock fragments, which rose a few kilometres above the summit of Etna and were pushed west by the wind.
Etna is a popular tourist destination all year, with its snowy landscape and frequent volcanic activity attracting photographers, hikers and winter sports enthusiasts despite frequent eruptions and lava flows.
Footage showed dozens of skiers continuing to summit Etna today as smoke rose in the background.
Following an eruption earlier this year, officials urged visitors to stop approaching running lava, calling the natural phenomenon “extremely dangerous”.
Etna had an “eventful year”, the institute said, citing three eruptions, the first beginning in February.
A “spectacular” eruption in June had tourists scrambling down the volcano. That eruption – which sent lava flowing in three directions – was probably caused by “the collapse of material from the northern flank” of Etna’s southeast crater, the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology said.
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