DR Congo to start phased return of residents to volcano-hit Goma

Prime Minister Jean-Michel Sama Lunkonde says seismic activity has subsided in the eastern DR Congo city.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo will start a phased return of residents who fled Goma in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption that destroyed thousands of homes and threatened to overrun the city, the government has said. Less than a week after the initial eruption on May 22, which just stopped short of the city limits, some 400,000 people scrambled to leave when the government warned underground tremors could cause a new eruption, or trigger the release of toxic gases. The tremors have since subsided, and many people have returned to Goma. The city lies on the shores of Lake Kivu, about 12km (7.5 miles) from Mount Nyiragongo, Africa’s most active volcano.