A fresh volcanic eruption began in Iceland on Saturday evening with little warning, again threatening previously evacuated areas.

On Saturday evening at 20:33 (local time), lava erupted from a fissure in the earth in the same region of Iceland for the fourth time since December.

The bright eruptions near the coastal town of Grindavík could be seen from the capital Reykjavík, just 40 kilometres to the north-east.

All neighbouring villages were evacuated. Lava is partially flowing towards the protective barriers for the coastal town of Grindavík, which was already evacuated in November, and is now only around 200 metres away from them.

According to initial analyses of aerial photographs, it is assumed that the eruption is the strongest to date. It was preceded by only around 40 minutes of seismic activity before fountains of lava shot out of a fissure in the earth.

Iceland currently hosts 33 active volcanoes, the country is particularly ripe for volcanoes to form due to its location straddling the meeting of tectonic plates at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.