TOURISTS ARE RUNNING FOR THEIR LIVES AS MOUNT ETNA, THE TALLEST ACTIVE VOLCANO IN EUROPE, ERUPTS. BUT WHEN HAS THIS HAPPENED BEFORE? 14:43, 02 Jun 2025Updated 15:14, 02 Jun 2025 Mount Etna

is the highest active volcano in the whole of Europe, and today, June 2, the molten rock has begun erupting. Tourists and locals alike are fleeing for their lives as a gigantic plume of

smoke is rising into the sky on the east coast of Sicily. Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology issued a statement at 11.03am local time (10.03am BST), saying:

"Over the past few hours, the activity flagged in the previous statement issued at 4.14am (3.14am BST) has carried on with strombolian explosions of growing intensity that, at the

for planes flying into Sicily, but it has now been reduced to Orange. The eruption comes after volcanic tremors were detected throughout last night, and a cloud of ash, made predominantly of

water and sulphur dioxide, is now drifting towards the south west. But as Mount Etna makes headlines worldwide, questions are rising on when the famous volcano has erupted before, and how

severe these previous eruptions have been. Here's everything you need to know about when the volcano, which measures at 3,400 metres tall and has a base of just under 100 miles, has

erupted before. Article continues below WHEN DID MOUNT ETNA LAST ERUPT? Etna is one of the most active volcanoes on Earth, and it has erupted countless times throughout the 500,000 years it

is thought to have been active, with records only going as far back as 3,000 years ago. The volcano erupted as recently as February of this year, when lava flowed from a fissure in the

southern base of the Bocca Nuova crater on the surface of Etna. But the famous volcano's most recent significant eruptions occurred just last year. Two eruptions took place, one on July

4, which forced Catania airport to close for a day. Etna then erupted violently on August 14 last year, sending an ash cloud that reached 9.5 kilometres into the sky, causing a further

closure of Catania airport. WH The Economic Times reports that four flank eruptions (meaning an eruption that occurs on the side of the volcano, rather than its summit) have occurred on

Mount Etna since the year 2000. These occurred in the years: * 2001 * 2002-2003 * 2004–2005 * 2008–2009 Summit eruptions have also occurred in recent years, in: * 2006 * 2007–2008 *

January–April 2012 * July–October 2012 * December 2018 * February 2021 WHEN WAS MOUNT ETNA'S MOST VIOLENT ERUPTION? Way back in 1669, Mount Etna erupted, in its most violent and biggest

eruption since records began.In March of that year, the volcano began to rumble, and over the following weeks, several violent eruptions continued for about four months. It is thought that

14 villages and towns were destroyed by lava and earthquakes during these eruptions, and thousands of people were left without homes.Around 20,000 people are thought to have died in this

most significant eruption. Article continues below JOIN THE DAILY RECORD WHATSAPP COMMUNITY! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.

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