Volcano in Russian Far East sends ash up to 7 km into sky

A volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia's Far East has spewed ash up to 7 km into the sky, the TASS news agency reported Wednesday.

"The volcano continues erupting. The ash plume has spread 264 km east and southeast of the volcano," it said.

An "orange" aviation alert code has been assigned to the volcano, second after the highest -- red code, indicating hazard for aircraft flying over.

The Klyuchevskoy volcano is located 360 km northwest of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the capital of the Kamchatka Krai. The volcano, which is believed to be about 7,000 years old, is 4,750 meters above sea level. The Kamchatka Peninsula has 29 active volcanoes. Endi