The Sun UK
written by Fran Wetzel
Tuesday April 2, 2013
Zafferana Etnea – a small tourist town in the province of Catania with 9,450 residents — was blanketed by thick black volcanic dust after the eruption.
Locals said they heard the explosions and felt violent shaking.
They said the air was humid, the sky went dark and there was no visibility.
The town’s residents are used to frequent volcanic eruptions – this is the eighth this year alone.
The Italian locals now have a massive clearing job to do as roads, gardens and rooftops were covered in up to ten centimetres of ash and stones.
Workers use special equipment to blow away the ash and collect solidified lava.
The damage was assessed “incalculable” and the region and the neighbouring municipalities have declared a state of emergency.
When the ash gets wet it takes on a cement-like quality and turns waterproof — causing flooding in streets and houses.
Giuseppe Patti, a geologist and teacher, said that the ash is moderately toxic if inhaled and has a mild degree of radioactivity.
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