A pre-dawn volcanic explosion turned this perfect cone into a fountain of fire
In 1968, Costa Rica’s Arenal Volcano ended centuries of dormancy with a violent eruption that instantly transformed the mountain from a peaceful, forested peak into a spectacle of glowing lava.
Arenal was long considered an extinct peak until three craters blasted open on its western flank on July 29, 1968. This sudden awakening buried nearby villages under hot ash and massive glowing rocks, some of which were launched over a kilometer from the vent.
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