Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
Video Credit: CEN/CENAPRED
This is the moment Mexico’s mighty Popocatepetl volcano erupts and sends a huge fireball of lava out of the crater as black smoke fills the night sky.
Popocatepetl, an active volcano located in the states of Puebla and Morelos in central Mexico, erupted at around 4.12am on 21st January, according to the National Civil Protection Coordination.
The National Centre for Prevention of Disasters (CENAPRED) has maintained the alert level around the volcano at Yellow Alert Phase 2, with a warning not to come close to the volcano.
The alert also means incandescent fragments could be expelled from the volcano up to a few kilometres from the crater with the possibility of mudflows, but evacuation is not necessary.
The authorities recommend residents to cover their nose and mouth with a wet handkerchief in this alert level.
In the night footage, the mighty volcano is seen spewing lava and a column of ash and debris high into the sky.
According to local media, the volcano’s peak was covered in snow the night before and the regional meteorological body said it is the first time Popocatepetl has been snow-capped this year.
Despite its picturesque snowy appearance, CENAPRED advised residents not to go near the area as 32 small eruptions took place during a 75-minute period on Monday evening, prior to the filmed eruption the following night.
Popocatepetl stands at 5,426 metres (17,802 feet) tall and is one of the most active volcanoes in Mexico. Its name comes from the Nahuatl language and means ‘Smoking Mountain’.
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