Iceland volcano erupts for fifth time since December spewing lava into the sky

Footage shows huge spurts of lava as a volcano in Iceland erupted for the fifth time since December, as Jay Akbar reports

A volcano in southwestern Iceland erupted on Wednesday for the fifth time since December, shooting lava into the sky and triggering the evacuation of the nearby spa.

The eruption began in the early afternoon following a series of earthquakes north of Grindavik, a coastal town of 3,800 people that was largely evacuated in December when the volcano erupted.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office said lava was shooting about 50 metres into the sky from a fissure about 1.5 miles long and flowing toward Grindavik.

Although activity began to calm down by early evening, initial estimates found the eruption was the most vigorous in the area so far, as lava shot 50 metres into the sky from a fissure that grew to 2.1 miles in length, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said.

Barriers built to protect Grindavik deflected the flowing lava that cut off two of the three roads leading to town and was close to reaching the third.

"It’s a much larger volume that’s on the move right now headed for town," Grindavik Mayor Fannar Jónasson told national broadcaster RUV. "The lava has already conquered (a lot)."

Workers and anyone still in town were ordered to leave earlier in the day, police said.

Grindavik, which is about 30 miles southwest of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, has been threatened since a swarm of earthquakes in November forced an evacuation in advance of the initial eruption on December 18.

That eruption saw huge plumes of lava shooting into the sky across a fissure 2.5 miles long.

Grindavik was evacuated in November when the earthquakes began with some fearing the whole town could be consumed by lava.

The area is part of the Svartsengi volcanic system that was dormant for nearly 800 years before reawakening.

The volcano erupted again in February and March. The February 8 eruption engulfed a pipeline, cutting off heat and hot water to thousands of people.

Iceland, which sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic, sees regular eruptions and is experienced at dealing with them.

The most disruptive in recent times was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which spewed huge clouds of ash into the atmosphere and led to widespread airspace closures over Europe.

The latest eruption was unlikely to pose a risk to air travel, national broadcaster RUV quoted Guðjón Helgason, a press officer with airport operator ISAVIA, as saying.

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