Iceland Raises Volcano Alert to Red after Eruption | WPN World People News

Iceland's Meteorological Institute has raised the alert warning for the country's largest volcano.

The institute raised the warning code Friday to red, the highest level, after a small eruption of the Bardarbunga volcano overnight.

Icelandic aviation officials have also closed down the airspace around the volcano.

However, the civil protection office said in a statement that no volcanic ash has been detected.

Ash from the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano in 2010 shut down much of Europe's airspace for six days. The eruption, a little over 100 kilometers from the capital, Reykjavik, affected more than 10 million air travelers and cost $1.7 billion.

Last week Icelandic officials raised the risk level to the aviation industry for an eruption to orange, which is the fourth level of a five-grade scale. That alert was lifted the next day.

Source: Voice of America