PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, August 18. /TASS/. The Shiveluch volcano in Russia’s Far Eastern region of Kamchatka has started to spew ash and lava, the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences has told TASS.
"The eruption of the Shiveluch volcano has begun," scientists said. "According to visual evaluations, the ash column is rising as high as 8 kilometers above the sea level."
The volcano has also released a gush of lava.
Shiveluch is one of the largest volcanoes on Kamchatka with a height of 3,283 meters. It consists of three elements: the "Old Shiveluch" stratovolcano, an ancient caldera, and the active "Young Shiveluch." The lava dome of "Young Shiveluch" is 2,500 meters high. The volcano is located at the intersection of the Kuril-Kamchatka and Aleutian island arcs at a distance of 50 km from the village of Klyuchi in the Ust-Kamchatsky District and 450 km from the regional capital, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.