Russian Authorities Report New 2-Mile Ash Outburst at Ebeko Volcano

YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, Russia (Sputnik) - The Ebeko volcano in Russia's Kuril Islands has spewed ash at the height of 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) in a second such episode in two days, the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations said on Sunday.

Ebeko, located on Paramushir Island, released a 3.5-kilometer column of ash on Friday. Earlier this week, the ash-eruption of another Russian volcano, Shiveluch, blanketed several villages and towns with dust in far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula.

"The crisis management center of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for the Sakhalin Region received a report from the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruption Response Team saying that the Ebeko volcano released ashes to a height of 3 kilometers. The plume spread in the north-east direction for a distance of more than 5 kilometers," the statement read.

Monitoring services have not spotted any incidents of ash fall in the city of Severo-Kurilsk and no smell of hydrogen sulfide. The ministry said there was no threat to local residents.

Ebeko is a 1,156-meter (3,792 feet) volcano located 7 kilometers north-west of Severo-Kurilsk in the northern part of the Vernadskii Ridge. Its ash outbursts have been fairly mild and regular since October 2016. The record ash release was recorded on August 31, 2018, when the volcano's new vent, which emerged in 2017, threw ash 6 kilometers high.