Mt. Etna Is Erupting, But People Are Skiing and Making Ashtrays There

By Bethanie H

Published

02/19/2025

Mt. Etna, an active volcano in Sicily, Italy, is erupting, and the natural spectacle is drawing not only geology students, professionals, and enthusiasts like Giuseppe Tonzuso but also the general public. In fact, news sources are reporting that “thousands of people” are rushing to the volcano to witness the eruption. In some cases, this is making it difficult for rescue crews to access the area when people need help.

Videos by Outdoors

Despite the smoke and lava from the eruption, some visitors are choosing to do more than just stop and look. For instance, a group of professional skiers have gone viral for skiing on Etna’s snowy slopes as lava flows in the background. Tonzuso, who shares photos and videos of Etna’s eruptions on social media, also shared a video of someone making an ashtray from lava. Who would have thought?

See Tonzuso’s footage of Etna erupting here (scroll to see videos of people skiing and making an ashtray):

@giuseppe_tonzuso
Ieri sopralluogo alla nuova colata lavica del vulcano. In seguito all’apertura di una frattura alla base del cratere Bocca Nuova, avvenuta diversi giorni fa, si hanno diversi bracci lavici che confluiscono in un unico canale. La colata è ben alimentata, e da quota 3.000 metri sembra aver raggiunto quota 1.900 metri circa. Nel frattempo, il cratere di Sud-Est, proprio nella giornata di ieri, ha incrementato l’attività esplosiva, andando a “sporcare” tutto il manto nevoso. #etna #volcano #vulcano #eruption #sicily #sicilia #italy #italia #catania #dji #djimini4pro #fy #fyp
♬ Time – Hans Zimmer

Now, watch some skiers snag the opportunity of a lifetime to ski in front of a lava flow:

And, finally, here’s someone making an ashtray from the lava. Tonzuso shared this video on TikTok, saying: “Here is the ancient art of artisanal ashtrays made with lava from Etna.”

@giuseppe_tonzuso
Ecco l’antica arte dei posaceneri artigianali fatti con la lava dell’Etna🌋 #etna #vulcano #volcano #eruption #sicilia #sicily #catania #fy #fyp
♬ suono originale – giuseppe_tonzuso