Residents flee Goma as volcano erupts nearby

Congo's Mount Nyiragongo erupted for the first time in nearly two decades Saturday. The eruption turned the night sky a fiery red and sent lava onto a major highway. Panicked residents tried to flee Goma, a city of nearly two million. There was no immediate word on any casualties, but witnesses said that lava already had engulfed one highway that connects Goma with the city of Beni in North Kivu province. Mount Nyiragongo's last eruption, in 2002, left hundreds dead and coated airport runways in lava. More than 100,000 people were left homeless in the aftermath, adding to the fear in Goma on Saturday night. The government said an evacuation plan was being activated. Rwandan immigration authorities reported that some 3,000 people already had officially crossed over from Congo to escape the volcano's eruption, according to the national broadcaster.