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Watch aerial footage of Iceland's lava fields as eruptions near Bardarbunga continue

Video: Amazing footage shows an eruption at a lava field in Iceland

Kiran Moodley
Thursday 04 September 2014 13:36 BST
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Iceland declares state of emergency as volcanic eruption expected soon

The latest video from Iceland shows magma flaring up from the Holuhraun dyke, just north of the Bardarbunga volcano.

According to authorities on Wednesday, more lava poured out of Bardarbunga but no ash emerged from the eruption.

Experts have said that while tall fountains of fire and lava continue to appear around the volcano, seismic activity has begun to calm down.

Recent video shows the lava fields at the Holuhraun dyke. On Wednesday, increased volcanic tremors near the Holuhraun eruption led to an evacuation of people in the area over fears that a subglacial eruption might be imminent. By the evening, the tremors had receeded.

The ash warning for planes flying in the region remains at orange after briefly rising to the top level of red on Sunday after lava fountains were seen rising 50 metres high. Organ is the second-highest level on the scale which indicates how much of a risk ash in the air will cause aircraft.

Back in 2010, another Icelandic volcano called Eyjafjallajokull closed large parts of European air space for nearly a whole week causing severe disruptions for thousands.

"The eruption is still going on at the same pace as before," Einar Heinarsson, a spokesman at Iceland's department of civil protection, told Reuters. "It has been continuous."

Iceland's largest volcanic system, which cuts a 190-km long and up to 25-km wide swathe across the North Atlantic island, has been hit by thousands of earthquakes over the last two weeks.

While scientists and authorities continue to monitor the volcano and the surrounding area, an Icelandair pilot decided to use the lull in volcanic activity to give his passengers a closer view of Bardarbunga.

Video courtesy of Newsflare.com

Additional reporting by Reuters

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