Camera Footage Shows Moment Volcanic Lava Engulfed Drone in Mid Air

When the Icelandic Fagradalsfjall volcano erupted, YouTuber Joey Helms knew just what to do. So, he grabbed his drone and headed toward the molten-hot area. But, when he got his machine in the air for a bird's eye view, an unfortunate accident occurred.

While the camera-savvy man was excited at first, seeing the lava flow through the crevasses of the volcano, he soon realized his flight path was too low to avoid the hot liquid. Then, with a burst of magma, the drone's camera was engulfed in flaming liquid and lost connection.

The Icelandic Met Office has set up a weather station at the eruption site at #Fagradalsfjall. Observations from the station can be found here: https://t.co/I6ksjzh6N8
While our experts were installing the station yesterday they witnessed changes in the lava flow from the crater pic.twitter.com/CUx5ztwzgQ

— Icelandic Meteorological Office - IMO (@Vedurstofan) March 24, 2021

"I tried to push it as much as I can to get spectacular footage, but I reckon I pushed it a little too far," Helms admitted. Nevertheless, the content he managed to capture wowed the masses. One fan commented, "ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE! Definitely one of the most extraordinary drone shots I've ever seen!"

Others said the likes of, "That has to be the best shots I've seen. Shows the massive amounts of lava pouring out! Truly EPIC!" This is surely a historical eruption, as the Fagradalsfjall volcano has laid dormant for over 900 years. But since March, it's been erupting in red-hot glory!

Thanks to Helms and The Iceland Meteorological Office (IMO), we're able to see close-up views of what it actually looks like! According to IMO, the eruption at Fagradalsfjall volcano began just before 9:00 pm GMT / 4:00 pm CST on Friday, March 19th, after what was reported as a 3.1 magnitude earthquake in the area.

"I can see the glowing red sky from my window," said Rannveig Gudmundsdottir, a Grinavik resident that resided close by the eruption site. Apparently, as reported by Reuters, the volcano's tremendous lava path spanned the equivalent of 200 football fields.

A new video of the eruption at Geldingardalur valley in Reykjanes peninsula. Taken from the Coast Guard helicopter. #Reykjanes #Eruption #Fagradalsfjall pic.twitter.com/B862heMzQL

— Icelandic Meteorological Office - IMO (@Vedurstofan) March 19, 2021

Talk about a hot start to summer for Iceland! "It was quite a shocking moment for sure, but the silver lining is that we get some amazing-looking footage," stated photographer Helms.