Italy firefighters douse fires on Stromboli after eruptions
Posted: July 4, 2019 - 6:09am
Ash rises into the sky a day after a volcano erupted on the small Sicilian island of Stromboli, southern Italy, early Thursday, 4 July 2019. Civil protection authorities said a hiker was killed during the eruptions on Wednesday which sent about 30 tourists jumping into the sea for safety. (Bartolino Leone/ANSA via AP)

MILAN (AP) — Firefighters using helicopters and motorboats are continuing to douse fires ignited by a volcanic eruption on the Sicilian island of Stromboli that killed a hiker.

Mayor Marco Giorgianni told the news agency ANSA on Thursday that about 100 people evacuated the island after a violent eruption sent glowing lapilli and lava spewing into the air, setting off a series of blazes. A hiker from Sicily was killed.

The mayor said that "a part of the island covered with a thick blanket of pumice looks like a post-war scene."  He added that work was underway to return the island to normal, and that electricity had been restored to much of the island.

The Stromboli volcano, which shares the name of the small island, is one of three active in Italy.
 

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