Essay by Eric Worrall
The super volcano which sits under Southern Italy just gave everyone a wakeup call.
Magnitude 4.7 Earthquake in Naples’ Campi Flegrei, the Strongest in 40 Years
Tremors felt in central part of the city as seismic swarm keeps alert levels high
Daniele Di Bartolomei
August 1, 2026Moments of extreme fear gripped Naples and its surrounding province as the ground shook with an intensity that many residents said they had not experienced in decades.
At 7:46 p.m. on Friday, July 31, a magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck the Campi Flegrei area, shaking the entire metropolitan area of Naples. The quake caused widespread damage, injured at least 21 people—two of them seriously—and forced thousands to spend another night in fear. According to authorities, it was one of the strongest earthquakes to hit the Phlegraean Fields in the past forty years.
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Thousands of residents rushed into the streets fearing further collapses, while power outages were reported in several neighborhoods. Rail services and parts of the Naples metro network were temporarily suspended as safety inspections got underway.
…The main earthquake was followed by an intense seismic swarm. Dozens of aftershocks, some exceeding magnitude 3.0, continued throughout the night, prompting many families to sleep in their cars or in emergency gathering areas set up by Italy’s Civil Protection Department. The succession of tremors heightened anxiety among residents who have been living for years with the effects of bradyseism—the slow uplift and subsidence of the ground that characterizes the Campi Flegrei volcanic area.
Read more: https://lavocedinewyork.com/en/news/2026/08/01/magnitude-4-7-earthquake-in-naples-campi-flegrei-the-strongest-in-40-years/
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Campi Flegrei last suffered a significant eruption in 1538, when a new 438ft hill Monte Nuovo appeared over a space of 7 days. You have to go back a lot further for really big eruptions, for example there was a large VEI 7 eruption 39 thousand years ago.
Campi Flegrei is significantly smaller than Yellowstone, but another VEI 7 eruption in Southern Italy would cause crop failures throughout Europe, and would likely impact the entire Northern Hemisphere. Having said that the risk of an eruption on that scale in our lifetimes is pretty unlikely.
A lesser eruption which threatens Naples and its surroundings is far more of a concern. Naples is built just down the road from Pompeii, the ancient Roman city which was famously destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. And as the appearance of Monte Nuovo in the 1500s shows, the region can still sometimes produce significant volcanic activity.
Let’s hope the Earthquake and the Earthquake swarm which followed is not a prelude to something worse.
