Mount Etna, Europe’s largest volcano, covers 460 square miles and is located in Sicily, Italy, the country's largest island and most southern point.
Mount Etna is also Europe’s most active volcano. Due to its most recent activity, the volcano has entered a “pre-alert phase, moving from warning level F0 to F1,” according to Italian authorities, per Euronews.
Lava began to spew on Sunday evening, creating volcanic clouds and ash moving south.
The volcanic ash and cloud coverage in the area led to the temporary closing of Sicily’s Catania International Airport, causing many flights to be canceled or delayed.
Of the flights scheduled to depart Monday, 76% were canceled, in addition to a 53% cancellation rate for those scheduled to arrive at the airport, Flightradar24’s live air traffic showed.
The airport posted on X, formerly Twitter, that “Due to Etna eruption, and fallout of volcanic ash, #CTAairport is closed until 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 15. Please contact the airline for information about your flight.”
Many flights were diverted to surrounding airports, as it is prime summertime travel season in Italy. Thousands of travelers headed to the popular tourist destination had to make last-minute changes to their itineraries.
The closure due to the volcanic eruptions comes just days after another busy airport, the Catania–Fontanarossa Airport, had reopened following a closure from a fire in one of the terminals that closed the airport for weeks.