Alaska's Mount Redoubt volcano erupts for first time in 20 years, shooting smoke 50,000ft into air


Picture of Mount Redoubt taken before the eruptions

A volcano has begun to erupt around 100 miles from the Alaskan city of Anchorage.
The Mount Redoubt eruption has sent plumes of smoke 50,000 feet above sea level.

Geologists at theAlaska Volcano Observatory say the volcano erupted three times in quick succession.

Mount Redoubt is roughly 100 miles southwest of Anchorage, which has a population of around 279,000.

Geophysicist John Power said: "This is a fairly large eruption, close to the larger cities in Alaska."

He said no cities had yet reported any ash fall from the volcano.

Geologists say seismic activity around the volcano has been intense in recent days, and they expect that the volcano would "blow soon".

Mr Power said Mount Redoubt last erupted nearly 20 years ago.

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