Page 6 - Italian-American Herald - October 2024

6 ITALIANAMERICANHERALD.COM | OCTOBER2024 ITALIAN-AMERICANHERALD HISTORY
Continuous eruptions of Mount Etna are a danger to Catania and other small towns on its slopes. | ADOBE STOCK
Volcanoes: Eruptions and earthquakes are always possible inside the ring of fire
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the highest volcano in Europe to the west of the Urals. Its most current eruptions were in August (as of this writing) disrupting flights and leaving towns covered in ash. My first view of the volcano years ago filled me with a sense of awe but also a bit of fear. However, like the locals I soon grew accustomed to its eruptions which left just ashes in the streets and on the cars where we visited.
I visited many of the towns on the slopes of the volcano and saw the destruction it had caused and heard the miracles that locals attributed to their survival. It was always
a highlight to head to the small town of Castelmola above Taormina, in the province of Messina, and to watch streams of lava flowing down the mountain in the distance while we ate at a local trattoria.
Two years ago, I traveled near the summit and was expecting a barren wasteland but was astounded to see groves of green trees which had grown back among the lava fields. Plumes of white smoke were coming out of nearby vents, but Etna was quiet that day.
Stromboli, a small island north of Sicily,
is one of the most active volcanoes in the world and famous for its normally small, but routine explosions throwing out glowing
lava from several vents inside its crater. This activity has been going on for at least 2,000 years, as recorded by written documents. Stromboli was named after its so-called strombolian activity. This refers to the ejection of luminous cinders, droplets of lava which are still partly molten when they fall to
earth, and volcanic bombs, which can reach altitudes of hundreds of meters. Years ago, while taking a ferry from Salerno to Messina Sicily, I had a close-up view of the glowing lava shining through the early morning mist as we passed the island.
Then there is Vulcano, on the island of the same name, which is part of the Aeolian Islands off the coast of Sicily. This last erupted between 1888 and 1890. Visitors and residents on the island can still feel its effects while bathing in the sulfur pits known for their therapeutic effects. One also needs to
be careful in certain areas of the sea which have hot spots bubbling up amid the water.
Nearby is the volcano Vulcanello which has been dormant since the 16th century. There was also volcanic activity on the nearby island of Lipari that last took place around 1,400 years ago. While there are no recent eruptions there are still thermal springs and but there are still hot sulfurous gases emerging from the area.
Similar to Lipari, a volcano on the island of Pantelleria, located close to the coast of Africa, last erupted around 1,000 B.C. and a volcano on the island of Ischia last erupted in 1302. And near Rome, Monte Albano (south of Rome) erupted around 34,000 B.C and Sabatini (north of Rome) last erupted around 70,000 B.C. There are also three underwater volcanoes, Marsili and Palinuro in the Tyrrhenian Sea and Isola Ferdinandea in the Straight of Messina which are all considered active.
The people living in the shadow of Vesuvius and areas around Naples are now facing the threat of new volcanic activity from Campi Flegrei, the Phlegraean Fields, a huge caldera encompassing the western area of Naples. The Phlegraean Fields are capable
of producing violent eruptions, which has earned them the title of super volcano. The caldera was formed after a major eruption led to the collapse of the mouth of the volcano.
The Phlegraean Fields, which Romans believed were an entrance to hell, is an area consisting of the Naples districts of Agnano and Fuorigrotta, the area of Pozzuoli, Bacoli, Monte di Procida, Quarto, the Phlegraean Islands, Ischia, Procida and Vivara. Over 500,000 people live in what Italy’s civil protection agency has designated a “red zone” with 18 towns at the highest risk if
an eruption would occur. There are also 3 million residents of Naples who live in the immediate vicinity outside the eastern edge of the crater’s mouth.
This super volcano last erupted in 1538, generating a small tuff (or ash) cone named Monte Nuovo (new mountain) Recent seismic activity has raised concerns that this 8-mile-wide volcano, consisting of 24 craters, most of them submerged under the Bay of Naples, could be about to erupt again.
Several geophysicists have explained that while super volcanoes are capable of