We all have different definitions of “fun”. Some of us like to take a walk in nature, others like to head out to a local rink for some hockey (this is Canada, after all).
But for others, “fun” entails visiting a restricted area to venture near the red-hot lava flow of an active volcano.
Thousands seem to like this idea, because in recent days, the east coast of Sicily has been flooded with tourists and their cars, which are blocking the roads and preventing emergency vehicles from getting to the volcano.
Mount Etna is the most active stratovolcano on the planet. Its first eruption of 2025 is happening now, and it ramped up over the weekend, resulting in large lava flows that sliced through the snowpack.
The dangerous and potentially life-threatening situation has prompted local officials to forbid visitors from getting within 500 metres of the lava, but that directive appears to be largely ignored.
Tourists preventing emergency vehicle access
Local media reports that hordes of tourists, many of them unprepared for Mount Etna’s dangerous terrain and environment, are hiking and skiing on the snowpack, shockingly close to the fiery lava.
In a Sunday Facebook post, Salvo Cocina, Sicily’s head of regional civil protection, called the influx of tourists “wild” and “extremely dangerous.”
“As darkness falls, the situation becomes extremely dangerous, with rising risks of falls and people sinking into the snow,” he added, but to no avail.
On Sunday, rescuers had to attend to a woman with “inadequate equipment” who was having a panic attack on the mountain. Later that day, a 48-year-old man suffered a fractured foot from a fall.
Then, on Monday, eight people, including two minors, got lost during an unauthorized Mount Etna excursion for several hours, prompting a rescue from the fire brigade. Later that night, another group of four went missing, the Guardian reports.
“It is therefore confirmed that it is the careless behaviour of unprepared … people that create most accidents and calls for help,” Cocina said on Facebook.
This is a sample of the chaotic scenes taking place at Mount Etna. Officials say the visitors began flocking to the area on February 11.
Lava isn’t the only threat: When thermal energy spews from a volcano, large rocks can be violently hurled into the air, potentially crashing down on unexpecting visitors.
Header image: A skier hovers near Mount Etna’s lava flow. Taken in Catania, Italy on February 11, 2025. (Dario Teri/Storyful)
