Lava flow spares Goma city after volcano erupts in DR Congo
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23/05/2021 - 10:13 Even before the official evacuation order, hundreds of people had begun to leave the city Moses Sawasawa AFP 3 min A river of boiling lava has come to a halt on the outskirts of Goma, the capital of Democratic Republic of Congo s North Kivu state, after the eruption of Mount Nyiragongo sent thousands of terrified residents fleeing in panic. Advertising Read more
Fire and strong fumes emanated from the blackish molten rock as it swallowed up houses, heading towards Goma airport on the shores of Lake Kivu, an AFP correspondent said.
Thousands have fled a volcanic eruption in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but the flaming lava from Mount Nyiragongo appeared to have come to a halt on the outskirts of Goma city early Sunday.
According to an AFP correspondent at the scene, the molten rock, which the eruption had sent close to Goma airport on the shores of Lake Kivu, still appeared unstable, but had come to a standstill in the suburbs of the eastern city.
And around a dozen earth tremors were felt in the early hours. People are beginning to return to their homes. The situation seems to have calmed down for the moment, one resident said.
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A river of boiling lava came to a halt on the outskirts of Goma Sunday, sparing the city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo from disaster after the nighttime eruption of Mount Nyiragongo sent thousands of terrified residents fleeing in panic.
Fire and strong fumes emanated from the blackish molten rock as it swallowed up houses, heading towards Goma airport on the shores of Lake Kivu, an AFP correspondent said.
But the military governor of North Kivu province said the city was spared after the lava halted near Buhene on the outskirts of Goma .
Five people were killed in accidents during the evacuations, said General Constant Ndima, who was appointed governor early this month when the province was placed under a state of siege to combat violence by armed groups.
Residents of Goma posed in front of the wreckage as the lava came to a halt on the outskirts of the city on Sunday 23 May, sparing it from disaster after the night-time eruption of the Nyiragongo volcano.