Mount Etna live: Volcanic eruption sparking chaos as airport cancels flights

NewsWorld newsVolcanoesLIVEUpdated 4 mins agoTheMount Etna(Image: Etna Walk/AFP via Getty Images)Updated 14:24, 05 Jul 2026Mount Etna in Sicily is erupting with clouds of ash pouring into the sky.Catania Airport, used by hundreds of thousands of Brit holidaymakers a year, has had to cancel all incoming flights due to safety fears, local news site La Sicilia has said.Italy's biggest airline ITA has said all its flights departing and arriving at the airport will be cancelled or rescheduled in response to the ongoing incident as an ash cloud appears to be moving across the region.Footage shared on social media shows the active volcano on the east coast of the Italian island with ash reportedly starting to rise from the volcano at around 7.45am this morning and intensifying just before 9am.‌View PostView PostView PostToday14:12 BSTITA Airways cancels all flights and says Catania Airport 'closed'Italy's leading airline ITA AIrways has announced all its departing and arriving flights to and from Catania are subject to cancellations or rescheduling.In a statement issued on X, the airline wrote: "Temporary closure of Catania Fontanarossa airport. Due to Mount Etna’s volcanic activity and the presence of volcanic ash in the atmosphere, operations at Catania Fontanarossa Airport have been temporarily suspended."Our departing and arriving flights are subject to cancellations and rescheduling. Please check your flight status on our website and app before heading to the airport."Today14:11 BSTWebcam footage of the dramatic eruptionWebcam footage shows dramatic eruption on Mount EtnaToday13:54 BSTVolcano eruption in dramatic picturesDramatic pictures show the scale of the eruption in Sicily.Mount Etna erupting(Image: Etna Walk/AFP via Getty Images)Smoke rising from the crater(Image: Etna Walk/AFP via Getty Images)Ash emissions were reported before 8am this morning(Image: Etna Walk/AFP via Getty Images)Today13:51 BSTAsh started to emerge from Etna in morningLocal news in Sicily reports ash rising from the stratovolcano just before 8am this morning (Sunday, July 5) before intensifying around an hour later.La Sicilia reports: "From 7:45 a.m., ash emissions began from the vent on the upper eastern flank of the Voragine crater, intensifying around 8:45 a.m. until generating an eruptive cloud about 1.5 kilometres high above the volcano's summit. For safety reasons, incoming flights to Catania-Fontanarossa airport have been suspended, while Ingv models indicate that the ash cloud will move toward the southern and south-southeast sectors in the coming hours."Today13:49 BSTFootage of the eruptionVideo footage shows the volcano erupting while locals and visitors enjoy the beach.Thick smoke can be seen pumping into the blue sky from the peak of the mountain.Content cannot be displayed without consentToday13:43 BSTFlights grind to a halt at Catania Airport amid Mount Etna eruptionCatania Airport has suspended flights due to safety fears.It has ordered the closure of sector B2 and reduced flights to five per hour until 9pm local time following the volcanic activity.‌

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