The recent eruption of Mount Etna, Europe's most active volcano, has plunged residents and tourists on the island of Sicily into a state of chaos and panic. Photographs have captured the dramatic impact of this formidable natural event.

Mount Etna, the volcano that towers over eastern Sicily, has again captivated the world with a spectacular show, spewing smoke and high into the sky. But the defining event of Monday’s eruption was the more rare pyroclastic flow from the southwestern crater not visible from a distance.