© Josue Decavele/ReutersLava flows from Fuego volcano during an eruption as seen from Alotenango, on the outskirts of Guatemala City, Guatemala, March 2.
Guatemalan authorities issued a warning Wednesday as the country's Fuego volcano, located near the capital, spewed ash into the air.
A spokesman for the country's disaster response agency, David de Leon, said the 3,763-meter (12,346-foot) high volcano had entered a new eruptive phase with increasing explosive activity, prompting an orange alert indicating danger.
The volcano sent ash plumes billowing more than 2,000 meters above the crater; they then spread as far as 40 kilometers to the west, southwest and north, the spokesman said.
He added that rural communities surrounding the volcano, as well as the urban municipalities of San Pedro Yepocapa and Santa Lucia Cotzumalguapa de Escuintla, reported fine ash particles falling from the sky.
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