AKIPRESS.COM - Europe's most active volcano, Mount Etna in Sicily, erupted on Monday, with officials reporting more than 130 earthquakes of up to 4.3 in magnitude, BBC reports.

The Mount Etna observatory said lava had spewed from a new fracture near its south-eastern crater.

A local volcanologist said it was Etna's "first flank eruption" in more than a decade.

Volcanic ash covered nearby villages, while planes into Catania airport had to be halted temporarily.

A large explosion was felt close to Etna during the morning.

A video filmed 2,500m (8,200 ft) up the 3,350m volcano showed the fast spread of ash. People on the mountainside were told to escape quickly.