The public is being asked to stay away from the site of a newly-started eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula, Southwest Iceland. RÚV reports that while the area is not officially closed, Civil Protection authorities have asked the public to stay away from the site while conditions are being assessed.
Icelandic Met Office staff first became aware that an eruption had begun on the Reykjanes peninsula around 1:30 this afternoon. A fissure, around 300 metres long, has opened at the same site where the Fagradalsfjall eruption occurred between March and September of last year.
A flight ban is currently in effect over the area as well, though officials say it is only a temporary measure while conditions are being assessed.
The eruption is relatively small and is located a considerable distance from inhabited areas and infrastructure. Gas pollution emitted by the eruption is currently streaming south, away from inhabited areas. The first pictures of the eruption published by the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management can be seen below.
