Tungurahua Volcano

Ecuador’s Tungurahua volcano (satellite map)—seen here from the town of Cotalo—shot truck-size boulders nearly a mile (1.6 kilometers) away Friday, prompting the evacuation of at least 300 people, according to the Associated Press.

Tungurahua—”throat of fire” in the indigenous Quechua language—sits high in the Andes mountains, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) south of Quito, Ecuador’s densely populated capital.

Eruptions are nothing new for the 16,500-foot (5,000-meter) volcano, which roared back to life in 1999 after nearly 80 years of dormancy.

Smoke Signal

On April 25 a steady plume of ash and steam spews from Ecuador’s Tungurahua volcano, whose immediate area is home to some 25,000 people.

Throat of Fire

Molten lava streams from the cone of Tungurahua volcano on April 26.

Tungurahua is one of eight active volcanoes in Ecuador. Less than 80 miles (130 kilometers) to the north, the active Cotopaxi volcano threatens more than a million people living in the Andes highlands.

Not-So-Clean Sweep

Men sweep streets covered with volcanic ash on April 30, a day after Tungurahua’s most recent powerful eruption. Ash showered a dozen towns in the sparsely populated area surrounding the volcano, according to the AP.

Peace in the Valley?

The erupting cone of the Tungurahua volcano looms over the valley below on April 29.

In 2006 Tungurahua shot ash and hot gas five miles (eight kilometers) into the air, destroying three nearby villages. And in 2008 the volcano spewed columns of ash six miles (ten kilometers) tall, forcing the evacuation of 3,000 people.