A volcano in Ethiopia’s north-eastern Afar region erupted on Sunday for the first time in nearly 12,000 years, sending plumes of smoke soaring up to 14 kilometres (nine miles) into the atmosphere, according to the Toulouse Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC).
The Hayli Gubbi volcano, located around 800 kilometres north-east of Addis Ababa and near the border with Eritrea, remained active for several hours. Though it rises only about 500 metres in elevation, the volcano sits within the geologically active Rift Valley, where tectonic plates meet.
The ash clouds from the eruption travelled beyond Ethiopia, drifting over Yemen, Oman, India, and northern Pakistan, the VAAC reported.
Videos shared on social media—yet to be independently verified by AFP—show a dense column of white smoke billowing skyward.
The Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program confirmed that Hayli Gubbi has had no known eruptions during the Holocene era, which began after the last Ice Age. This was supported by volcanologist Simon Carn of Michigan Technological University, who stated online that there is “no record of Holocene eruptions” at the site.
Authorities in the Afar region have not issued any updates regarding potential casualties or displacement at this time.
