Addis Ababa – Communities in Ethiopia’s Afar region were thrown into uncertainty on Sunday after the Hayli Gubbi volcano produced its first recorded eruption in nearly 12 000 years, sending a towering plume of ash about 14 kilometres into the sky and drifting across the Red Sea toward Yemen and Oman. The event has drawn attention even in Eswatini, as regional scientists monitor large-scale eruptions for their potential effect on global air travel and weather patterns.
The volcano sits about 500 miles north east of Addis Ababa close to the Eritrean border, and officials confirmed that the eruption continued for several hours. Mohammed Seid, a local government representative, reported that no deaths or injuries have been recorded, but extensive ash fall has created an immediate threat to livestock herders who depend on open grazing. He said several villages are coated in thick ash and animals now have very little to feed on.
Hayli Gubbi rises about 500 metres within the Rift Valley, an area where two tectonic plates meet. The region is known for frequent earthquakes, and residents described the eruption as sudden and violent. Local resident Ahmed Abdela said he heard a loud blast followed by what felt like a shock wave. He said it sounded like a bomb as smoke and ash surged upward.
The Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre reported that ash clouds travelled beyond Yemen and Oman, continuing over India and northern Pakistan. Pakistan’s Meteorological Department issued a warning after ash entered its airspace late on Monday. In India, Air India cancelled a number of domestic and international flights so that aircraft could undergo precautionary inspections. India’s Meteorological Department said Delhi, already struggling with severe air pollution, was unlikely to be affected as the ash was moving at high altitude.
Satellite images released by NASA showed dense plumes rising from the eruption site and spreading across the Red Sea. Videos shared on social media captured a thick white column of smoke rising into the sky although some of the footage has not yet been independently verified.
International research bodies also confirmed the rarity of the event. The Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program stated that Hayli Gubbi has no known eruptions during the Holocene era which began about 12 000 years ago. Michigan Technological University volcanologist Simon Carn echoed this assessment on Bluesky, noting that the volcano has no record of activity in that period.
Hayli Gubbi is the southernmost volcano in the Erta Ale Range, a volcanic chain in the Afar region.
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