Firefighters are battling a blaze on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius on Sunday, leading to the closure of all hiking trails to the volcano near Naples in southern Italy.
Twelve firefighting teams and six Canadair aircraft have been deployed to combat the fire, which has been spreading through the national park since Friday.
Additional firefighters have been called in from other regions of Italy to assist. “For safety reasons and to facilitate firefighting operations and clean-up in the affected areas, all activities on the national park’s trail network are suspended until further notice,” the park announced in a statement on Saturday.
In 2024, nearly 620,000 people visited the volcano’s crater, according to park statistics.
Smoke from the fire was visible on Sunday from the nearby archaeological site of Pompeii, which remains open to tourists.
