Guatemalan authorities evacuated around 1,000 people Monday after Central America’s most active volcano erupted, spewing lava, ash and rocks.
By night, however, the eruption was declared over, and evacuees were allowed to begin returning to their homes.
Residents with traumatic memories of a deadly eruption in 2018 sought refuge early Monday after Volcan de Fuego (Volcano of Fire) exploded spectacularly 35km (22 miles) from the capital Guatemala City.
“We heard the rumblings and then a strong eruption,” Manuel Cobox, 46, said after leaving his home with his wife and three daughters.
Some 125 families, around 900 people, were moved to safety from the community of El Porvenir, said Juan Laureano, a spokesman for Guatemala’s disaster coordination agency, Conred.