Russia’s Krasheninnikov Volcano in the country's eastern region spewed a towering plume of ash, as shown in a picture released by Russian state media. Dormant for nearly 450 years, the volcano has now erupted, confirmed the nation's emergency authorities on Sunday. This eruption follows a massive earthquake — a record-breaking 8.8 magnitude tremor — that struck the region earlier.
According to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Programme, the Krasheninnikov Volcano last erupted in 1550.
Ash Plume Spreading
The Kamchatka Ministry of Emergency Situations posted on Telegram, sharing visuals of a thick ash plume billowing from the volcano, estimated to have reached a staggering altitude of 6,000 meters.
“The plume is spreading eastward from the volcano toward a specific area. There are no populated zones along its path, and no ashfall has been recorded in inhabited locations,” said the ministry in the post.
The volcano has now been assigned an “orange” aviation hazard code — meaning flights in the area may be disrupted due to volcanic activity.
This is the second volcanic eruption in a week in Russia. Just days earlier, the highly active Klyuchevskoy Volcano also erupted. According to AFP, Klyuchevskoy is one of the most active volcanoes in both Europe and Asia. The Global Volcanism Programme reports that since the year 2000, at least 18 eruptions of Klyuchevskoy have been recorded.
Russia's Mega Earthquake
Both eruptions occurred in the wake of a powerful 8.8 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday — the strongest quake on record in the region. The tremor left residents shaken and triggered tsunami warnings in Russia, Japan, and the United States.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the epicenter was located 133 km southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, at a depth of 74 km.
Kamchatka’s regional seismic monitoring service confirmed that this was the strongest earthquake since 1952, warning that aftershocks up to magnitude 7.5 were possible.
“Given the scale of the event, strong aftershocks with a magnitude of up to 7.5 should be expected,” Kamchatka’s geophysical service noted in a Telegram statement.
