Thousands of people were ordered to evacuate an island in Vanuatu, a nation in the South Pacific ocean, where the Manaro Voui volcano is threatening to erupt, BBC reported. The volcano has been rumbling for days, but began spewing ash in a “moderate eruption” over the weekend, authorities said.
The development comes as Bali’s Mount Agung has also been threatening to erupt, forcing thousands to evacuate.
The government of Vanuatu ordered the evacuation of the nearby Ambae island after New Zealand’s military flew over the volcano on Tuesday and noticed huge columns of smoke, ash and volcanic rocks billowing from the crater, AP reported.
Ambae is one of 65 inhabited islands in Vanuatu. On Saturday, authorities had raised the alert to the second-highest level.
Most people are likely to be relocated to the neighbouring island of Pentecost, Radio New Zealand reported.
Manaro Voui last erupted in 2005, when 5,000 people had to flee their homes. It sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire – the arc of seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean where earthquakes and volcanoes are common. Mount Agung in Bali also lies in the Pacific Ring of Fire.
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