LAGO RANCO, CHILE (BNO NEWS) — Authorities on Saturday ordered the emergency evacuation of more than 3,000 people after a volcano erupted in southeastern Chile, officials said.

Interior Minister Rodrigo Hinzpeter said during a news conference that about 3,500 people would be evacuated after the Puyehue volcano in Ranco Province started to erupt. Initially, Chilean authorities ordered the evacuation of around 700 people.

Pictures from nearby towns showed large clouds of volcanic ash rising from the volcano, which last erupted in 1960. A Red Alert in the region has been declared.

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