Set to explode

The fear of a volcanic eruption from Mount Vesuvius looms large over Naples. Researchers at the Italian National Research Council and the Vesuvius Observatory have warned that there could be an explosion of hot ash and poisonous gases similar to the one that buried Pompeii in 79 ad. The mountain last erupted in 1944. Scientists have been using ultrasound scans to monitor the volcano and the areas nearby.

Volcano experts feel that changes in the ground surface near the volcano were caused by magma or molten rock and pressure from hot fluids, partly fuelled by sea water. Evacuation trials for the inhabitants of the villages near the base of volcano are on. But environmentalists have pointed out that the exercise is not enough. In fact, the latest scientific study has revealed that the volcano might be more dangerous than previously thought. It says that one million people living within a six-kilometre radius of the volcano would die during the first 15 minutes of the eruption.