Persistent Etna ash shuts Catania airport during peak holiday week

Persistent Etna ash shuts Catania airport during peak holiday week 0 seconds of 58 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? 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Etna, Europe’s largest active volcano, located on the island of Sicily in Italy continued to erupt overnight Thursday sending balls of orange fire and huge plumes of smoke into the air and causing the airport in Catania to extended the block on flight departures to August 15th at 2am local time. More Videos 0 seconds of 37 secondsVolume 90% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? 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As Sicily is a major Summer destination, hundreds of passengers remain stranded on the island. 3 of 7 | Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Mareneve near Catania, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Salvatore Allegra) 4 of 7 | Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Mareneve near Catania, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Salvatore Allegra) 5 of 7 | Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Mareneve near Catania, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Salvatore Allegra) 6 of 7 | Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Serracozzo near Catania, Italy, early Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Simone Genovese) 7 of 7 | Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Serracozzo near Catania, Italy, early Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Simone Genovese) By COLLEEN BARRY Updated 1:49 PM MESZ, August 14, 2026 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit MILAN (AP) — Ash spewing from Sicily’s Mount Etna has forced the closure of the Italian island’s largest airport for the fifth consecutive day, stranding hundreds of summer holiday travelers during the biggest travel week of the year. Catania’s airport will remain closed until early Saturday, which falls on the Ferragosto holiday that marks the height of the Italian summer holiday season when millions flock to the sea and mountains, deserting Italian cities. While Etna’s activity often interrupts flights at the airport, located 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the volcano, this is the longest emergency since 2002. “Volcanic ash can be a great risk for aircraft,” said Boris Behncke, a researcher at the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology’s Etna Observatory. “It can be sucked into the motors, and force them to stall. This is why everyone is so very cautious with aircraft when there is a volcanic ash emission.” Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Mareneve near Catania, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Salvatore Allegra) Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe. The latest activity has been unusual for its persistence and sustained ash emissions. Northerly winds have spread light amounts of ash to Malta and northern Africa. “There have been many shorter interruptions — and stronger eruptions — over the past few decades, but this event is different because the ash emission from Etna’s summit has been much more persistent,” Behncke said. Fuego volcano spews more ash and mud as Guatemala shelters 1,700 who fled nearby villages 3 MIN READ Drone with explosives found at German airport, official sees ‘new quality’ of threat 3 MIN READ Porter Airlines flight in Canada canceled after child refuses to sit down and buckle up 3 MIN READ The closure has forced planes to be rerouted to other airports on the island, which has pushed up taxi fares and car rental prices, according to the Corriere della Sera daily. The Codacons consumer association has announced it will file a complaint with Italy’s competition authority following complaints about price gouging. Mt. Etna, Europe’s largest active volcano, located on the island of Sicily in Italy continued to erupt overnight Thursday sending balls of orange fire and huge plumes of smoke into the air and causing the airport in Catania to extended the block on flight departures to August 15th at 2am local time. The SAC airport operator said 36% of nearly 2,000 flights scheduled to arrive in Catania from Aug. 6-12 had been canceled, while more than 600 were diverted to Palermo, Trapani and Comiso in Sicily and Lamezia Terme in Calabria. Flights were able to depart Catania over the weekend, but the airport was officially closed to both incoming and outgoing flights Monday. Comiso also was briefly closed. The Italian train company Trenitalia has added six trains along the Palermo-Messina-Catania route to help ease the travel pressure. Italy’s federation of travel agencies and tour operators has called for a task force to coordinate responses to disruptions caused by Mount Etna and said it would ask for a review of how airlines handled the cancellations and passenger assistance. “Operators are working around the clock to provide assistance, cancellations and alternative travel arrangements, but they cannot bear the burden of structural shortcomings and the management responsibilities of others,’' FIAVET President Gian Mario Pilieri said in a statement. Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Mareneve near Catania, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Salvatore Allegra) Eruptive activity continues on Mount Etna, where lava flows continue to descend on the slopes of the volcano, as seen from Serracozzo near Catania, Italy, early Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Simone Genovese) COLLEEN BARRY Barry covers all things Italy for The Associated Press. Her focus includes fashion and design, overtourism and the environment, politics and sometimes the Vatican. twitter instagram mailto