As volcano erupts, Indian Army in Congo assists in evacuation

The Army has also established an observation point giving real time updates of the lava flow to the Brigade headquarters.

As the active volcano in Congo, Mount Nyaragongo, erupted once again, the Indian Army contingent under the United Nations peace keeping mission (MONUSCO) assisted in protecting civilians and UN officials as well as assets during the evacuation, the Army said on Sunday. Mount Nyaragongo which overlooks Goma town erupted spewing lava, gases and sediments at around 1830 hours on May 22, 2021 resulting in panic within the civilian population, the Army said in a statement. Most of the lava, however, has flowed towards Rwanda and only a small stream is trickling towards Goma, it stated. While the UN's internal security system calculated that evacuation will not be required and asked various country contingents to be on alert, a majority of the country contingents including aviation contingents evacuated immediately, the statement said.