Nyiragongo volcano erupts: Residents flee Congolese city of Goma, share dramatic videos

Hundreds of thousands of residents were seen fleeing the eastern city of Goma after Mount Nyiragongo volcano that overlooks the border city bubbled into a deadly eruption. As several lay in the dangerous path of the volcanic lava, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo ordered the emergency evacuation, prompting thousands to pack their necessary belongings and leave the city overnight.

Early Sunday, the hot molten volcanic outburst reached the city's airport. An official at Virunga National Park expressed concerns as he dubbed the situation as “deteriorating”. Speaking to The Associated Press news agency, a resident fleeing the scene, Zacharie Paluku said, “We are already in a total psychosis, Everyone is afraid; people are running away. We really don’t know what to do.” 

DR Congo’s Mount Nyiragongo has erupted for the first time in nearly 2 decades early Saturday. The volcano had long been dormant but on May 22, the hot red molten lava shot up in the sky turning the horizon into crimson red, as local inhabitants panicked and fled for their lives. The hot lava had flown into the highway connecting Goma, where an estimated 2 million reside, with the city of Beni in North Kivu province, according to the visuals of the volcanic eruption. The DR Congo government activated an emergency evacuation plan in course of residents fleeing on foot trying to cross the Rwandan border anxious and fear-stricken for their lives. 

[People flee with their belongings after the eruption of Mount Nyiragongo, in Goma, Congo, Saturday, May 22, 2021. Congo's Mount Nyiragongo erupted for the first time in nearly two decades. Credit: AP Photo/Justin Kabumba]

Located approximately 10km (six miles) from Goma, the volcano in 2002 had killed nearly 250 and had rendered as many as 120,000 homeless. As of Saturday’s event, nearly 3,000 inhabitants had escaped the region as the lava flow reached southward and the smell of sulfur engulfed the atmosphere. DR Congo’s Communications Minister Patrick Muyay said on Twitter that the government was in discussion to come up with immediate measures to avert the crisis. He added, that the prime minister convened an emergency meeting in the capital, Kinshasa.

Military governor appeals for 'calm'

"The evacuation plan for the city of #Goma has been activated,” he tweeted. Mount Nyiragongo had erupted at around 7 pm (local) sending fiery red lava and hot smoke fumes into the sky. The military governor of North Kivu province, General Constant Ndima, appealed for calm on the local radio, saying that the citizens must adhere to the civil protection units’ guidance. Abrupt power failures were witnessed across many locations in Goma, as residents were seen journeying towards Sake, in the neighboring Congolese region of Masisi by walking and carrying the packed household items. 

There has not been a massive panic movement, but people are really worried, Tom Peyre-Costa, the council's spokesman for west and central Africa said on Twitter.