Volcano aftershocks rock east DRC, raise fears of fresh eruption

Death toll reaches 32 as lava lake in Mt Nyiragongo’s crater seems to have refilled, prompting fears of second eruption.

Powerful aftershocks from the Mount Nyiragongo volcano have rocked the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as the death toll from a recent eruption that left hundreds of families displaced rose to 32. Three days after Africa’s most active volcano roared back into life, tremors were shaking the region every 10 to 15 minutes on Tuesday morning. Cracks several centimetres (more than an inch) wide appeared in the ground and on roads in several areas, including near the main hospital in Goma, a city of some two million people which lies about 12 kilometres (seven miles) from Mount Nyiragongo. “The situation in the city is confused. People don’t know which way to go,” a resident told AFP news agency.