The End Times are here, the Rapture if upon us, and Jesus is due next Tuesday. At least that's the impression given by these snaps of the Calbuco volcano in southern Chile, which has sent vast clouds of ash into the sky. Authorities have evacuated 4,000 people and closed access to the area around the volcano, which lies near the cities of Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt, some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) south of Santiago.
LATAM airlines cancelled flights to and from both cities because airborne ash can damage jet engines. No injuries are reported but the twin blast have sparked concerns that water could be contaminates, causing respiratory illnesses. The volcano erupted Wednesday afternoon for the first time in more than four decades, then had another outburst early Thursday.
Calbuco volcano erupts
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The Calbuco volcano erupts near Puerto Varas, Chile, Thursday, April 23, 2015. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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View from Frutillar, southern Chile, showing volcanic lightnings and lava spewed from the Calbuco volcano on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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This view from Puerto Varas, southern Chile, shows a high column of ash and lava spewing from the Calbuco volcano, on April 23, 2015. (credit:DAVID CORTES SEREY via Getty Images)
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View from Frutillar, southern Chile, showing volcanic lightnings and lava spewed from the Calbuco volcano on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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View from Frutillar, southern Chile, showing volcanic lightnings and lava spewed from the Calbuco volcano on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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View from Frutillar, southern Chile, showing volcanic lightnings and lava spewed from the Calbuco volcano on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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View from Frutillar, southern Chile, showing volcanic lightnings and lava spewed from the Calbuco volcano on April 23, 2015 (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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View from Frutillar, southern Chile, showing volcanic lightnings and lava spewed from the Calbuco volcano on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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Smoke and lava spew from the Calbuco volcano, as seen from the shores of Lake Llanquihue in Puerto Varas, April 23, 2015. (credit:Reuters)
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Smoke and lava spew from the Calbuco volcano, as seen from the shores of Lake Llanquihue in Puerto Varas, April 23, 2015. (credit:REUTERS/Carlos Gutierrez )
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View from Puerto Varas, southern Chile, of a high column of ash and lava spewing from the Calbuco volcano, on April 22, 2015. (credit:AFP/Getty Images)
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The Calbuco volcano erupts near Puerto Varas, Chile, Wednesday, April 22, 2015. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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The Calbuco volcano erupts near Puerto Varas, Chile, Wednesday, April 22, 2015. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Children watch the Calbuco volcano erupt, from Puerto Varas, Chile, Wednesday, April 22, 2015. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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The Calbuco volcano is seen erupting from Puerto Varas, Chile, Wednesday, April 22, 2015. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Children watch the Calbuco volcano erupt, from Puerto Varas, Chile, Wednesday, April 22, 2015. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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View of the road to San Carlos de Bariloche, province of Rio Negro, 1570 km southwest of Buenos Aires, with a menacing ashes cloud from the Calbuco volcano in neighbouring Chile, on April 22, 2015. (credit:FRANCISCO RAMOS MEJIA via Getty Images)
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View from the Nahuel Huapi lake, province of Rio Negro, 1570 km southwest of Buenos Aires, of a menacing cloud from the Calbuco volcano in neighbouring Chile, on April 22, 2015. (credit:FRANCISCO RAMOS MEJIA via Getty Images)
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LLANQUIHUE, CHILE - APRIL 22: The Calbuco volcano erupts on April 22, 2015 near Puerto Varas in the Llanquihue Region, Chile. The volcano, considered as one of the most potentially dangerous in Chile, erupted for the first time in more than 42 years. It generated a huge cloud of ashes which is affecting the South of Chile and Argentina. (Photo by Ivan Konar/LatinContent/Getty Images) (credit:Ivan Konar/CON via Getty Images)
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LLANQUIHUE, CHILE - APRIL 22: The Calbuco volcano erupts on April 22, 2015 near Puerto Varas in the Llanquihue Region, Chile. The volcano, considered as one of the most potentially dangerous in Chile, erupted for the first time in more than 42 years. It generated a huge cloud of ashes which is affecting the South of Chile and Argentina. (Photo by Ivan Konar/LatinContent/Getty Images) (credit:Ivan Konar/CON via Getty Images)
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LLANQUIHUE, CHILE - APRIL 22: The Calbuco volcano erupts on April 22, 2015 near Puerto Varas in the Llanquihue Region, Chile. The volcano, considered as one of the most potentially dangerous in Chile, erupted for the first time in more than 42 years. It generated a huge cloud of ashes which is affecting the South of Chile and Argentina. (Photo by Ivan Konar/LatinContent/Getty Images) (credit:Ivan Konar/CON via Getty Images)
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LLANQUIHUE, CHILE - APRIL 22: The Calbuco volcano erupts on April 22, 2015 near Puerto Varas in the Llanquihue Region, Chile. The volcano, considered as one of the most potentially dangerous in Chile, erupted for the first time in more than 42 years. It generated a huge cloud of ashes which is affecting the South of Chile and Argentina. (Photo by Ivan Konar/LatinContent/Getty Images) (credit:Ivan Konar/CON via Getty Images)
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LLANQUIHUE, CHILE - APRIL 22: The Calbuco volcano erupts on April 22, 2015 near Puerto Varas in the Llanquihue Region, Chile. The volcano, considered as one of the most potentially dangerous in Chile, erupted for the first time in more than 42 years. It generated a huge cloud of ashes which is affecting the South of Chile and Argentina. (Photo by Ivan Konar/LatinContent/Getty Images) (credit:Ivan Konar/CON via Getty Images)
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A man distributes masks to prevent the harmful effects of the Calbuco volcano ashes, in Puerto Varas, on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)
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A man distributes masks to prevent the harmful effects of the Calbuco volcano ashes, in Puerto Varas, on April 23, 2015. (credit:MARTIN BERNETTI via Getty Images)