Iceland volcano erupts again, spewing fountains of lava

A volcano in Iceland erupted for the fourth time since December on Saturday, the country’s meteorological office said, spewing smoke and bright orange lava into the air in sharp contrast against the dark night sky.
Livestreams from the area showed fountains of molten rock soaring from fissures in the ground after authorities had warned for weeks that an eruption was imminent on the Reykjanes peninsula just south of Iceland’s capital Reykjavik.
“Warning: An eruption began in Reykjanes,” the Icelandic Meteorological Office said on its website, while Reykjavik’s Keflavik Airport’s website showed it remained open both for departures and arrivals.
The nearby Grindavik fishing town, where a few of the nearly 4,000 residents had returned following earlier outbreaks, was again being evacuated, public broadcaster RUV reported. An outbreak in January burned to the ground several of its homes.
Icelandic police said they had declared a state of emergency for the area and the Civil Defence authority dispatched a helicopter to survey the extent of the eruption.