iStockphoto / Abel Juarez / Eshma
Guatemala’s Volcán de Fuego erupted last week and sent hikers scurrying in fear with lava spewing from the top of the active volcano. It had last erupted in June 2025 so Volcán de Fuego was overdue and this Summer’s volcano eruption was one for the ages.
YouTube/content creator Sebastian Schieren was flying a drone around the top of Volcán de Fuego, also known as Chi Q’aq’, near Antigua, Guatemala when the volcano erupted. His resulting footage was nothing short of mind blowing.
Drone Footage Of Volcano Eruption In Guatemala: Volcán de Fuego
While much has been made about the falling debris and ash in the surrounding area and tourists fleeing while trying to dodge it, the close-up footage of the eruption is what I find most surreal. The fact that the drone managed to survive this volcano eruption and the footage was salvaged is surreal. It is as if they hit the ‘LAUNCH’ button at the perfect time.
@sebastian_schieren Anzeige | How did my @DJI Official Avata 360 survive this explosion? 🌋 Filmed in 8K/60fps and 360°, so I can reframe everything later and focus on dodging flying chunks of lava instead 🤓
An earlier video from Sebastian Schieren shot with his DJI Avata 360 camera shows how much debris was in the area. All it would have taken is a tiny glob of molten hot lava/rock to melt a crucial piece of the drone and send it careening back down to earth and the footage would have been lost. But they managed to fly it out of there in one piece and that alone deserves some respect.
@sebastian_schieren Anzeige | How did my @DJI Official Avata 360 survive this explosion? 🌋 Filmed in 8K/60fps and 360°, so I can reframe everything later and focus on dodging flying chunks of lava instead 🤓
Hikers Feeling For Safety
During the Volcán de Fuego eruption, not everyone was at a safe distance when everything went sideways. As a very active volcano, Volcán de Fuego sees between 70,000 to 150,000 tourists each year, or a few hundred each day.
With those kinds of numbers, there were lots of people around when the volcano erupted and this woman captured footage of them fleeing down the volcano as rock debris rained down upon them. They thankfully made it out of there safely and got this incredible video clip in the process:
Hikers near Guatemala’s Volcán de Fuego scrambled for safety as the volcano suddenly erupted, sending ash, lava and volcanic debris into the air. 🌋 pic.twitter.com/cWMQ5DP5L8
— AccuWeather (@accuweather) June 19, 2026
According to a 2025 article from Civitatis, Guatemala’s Volcán de Fuego is the 6th most visited active volcano on earth. Spanish explorer Pedro de Alvarado witnessed the volcano erupt in 1524 and has been known to Western civilization ever since.
The volcano sits high, at an elevation of 12,362 feet with a prominence of 1,539 feet. This recent eruption marks the 7th time Volcán de Fuego has erupted since 2018. So if you are in search of an active volcano to visit this is a great place to start!