Rome (AFP)
A strong eruption was underway Wednesday on the volcanic island of Stromboli, in the Italian Aeolian archipelago north of Sicily, sowing fear among locals and tourists.
Stromboli is an active volcano, but Wednesday's eruption was particularly impressive: "it was like being in hell, with a rain of fire falling from the sky," testified the island priest, Giovanni Longo, quoted by the Italian press agencies.
He was not able to say if hikers were on the slopes of the volcano at the time of the eruption.
According to Italian media reports, tourists fled the coast of the island after the eruption.
The firefighters of the Sicilian city of Messina, on which Stromboli depends, did not report casualties immediately.
One of their planes was not able to tackle the fires caused by the eruption due to the large amounts of smoke produced by the volcano, according to Italian media reports.
? 2019 AFP