Iceland volcano erupts weeks
after thousands were evacuated
STOCKHOLM (AP) — A volcanic eruption started Monday night on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula, turning the sky orange and prompting the country’s civil defense to be on high alert.
The eruption appears to have occurred about four kilometers (2.4 miles) from the town of Grindavik, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said. Grainy webcam video showed the moment of the eruption as a flash of light illuminating the sky at 22:17 local time. As the eruption spread, magma, or semi-molten rock, could be seen spewing along the ridge of a hill.
In November, police evacuated the town or Grindavik after strong seismic activity in the area damaged homes and raised fears of an imminent eruption.
Earthquake in northwestern
China kills at least 111 people
BEIJING (AP) — At least 111 people were killed in a magnitude 6.2 earthquake in a cold and mountainous region in northwestern China, the country’s state media reported on Tuesday.
Search and rescue operations were underway in Gansu province and neighboring Qinghai province. The earthquake left more than 300 people injured, damaged houses and roads, and knocked out power and communication lines, according to the media reports.
State broadcaster CCTV said that 100 people died in the province of Gansu and another 11 in the neighboring province of Qinghai in the quake, which occurred at a depth of 10 kilometers (six miles) just before midnight on Monday.
The quake struck in Gansu’s Jishishan county, about 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the provincial boundary with Qinghai. The epicenter was about 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) southwest of Beijing, the Chinese capital.
More than 300 people had been treated for injuries as of early morning, CCTV said. At least 140 people were injured in Qinghai and another 96 in Gansu, according to CCTV and the official Xinhua News Agency.
The U.S. Geological Survey put the quake’s magnitude at 5.9.
San Francisco prosecutors begin charging 80 protesters who blocked bridge
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco prosecutors on Monday began charging 80 protesters who last month blocked traffic for hours on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge while demanding a cease-fire in Gaza.
The protest came as San Francisco was hosting President Joe Biden and other world leaders for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
Seventeen people appeared in court on Monday to face charges of false imprisonment, refusing to comply with a peace officer, unlawful public assembly, refusing to disperse and obstruction of street, sidewalk or other place open to public. Their arraignments were continued to February.
