The bright red skies as seen from ITFC in Ruhija (Bwindi) say it all.
On Wednesday, Africa’s most active volcano Nyamulagira, rumbled again spectacularly turning skies bright orange and red.
Nyamulagira is one of the volcanoes in Virunga mountains located on the Democratic Republic of Congo, 25 kms north of Lake Kivu. It last erupted on January 2, 2010 and has erupted over 40 times since 1885. With lava spewing up to 980 feet up in the air, this could as well be the biggest eruption in 100 years. (Virunga) Park wardens have named the latest Nyamulagira eruption “Kimanura,” after the name of the area along the volcano’s flank.
The fireworks were clearly visible from the Virunga Park headquarters. Park rangers have set up a camp from which visitors can view the eruption at night.
There neither seems to be threat to the neighboring mountain gorillas habitat (Virunga National Park) nor to people since the lava is slowly flowing north where no one lives. The 3,000 square-mile Virunga National Park is a World Heritage site containing seven of the eight volcanoes in the Virunga mountain range that sprawls across the borders of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda. Only two are active – Nyamulagira and, closer to Goma, Mount Nyiragongo.
Nyiragongo erupted destructively in 2002, destroying most of Goma city including 14,000 homes and forcing 350,000 residents to flee.
Eruptions like this one can go on for days, weeks, or even months, so we’ll update you on the status.