Colombia evacuates families living near active volcano

By MANUEL RUEDA

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombian officials have begun to evacuate 40 families from their homes after a volcano in the center of the country showed high levels of seismic activity that could signal an eruption in the coming days or weeks. Officials on Monday also shut down a popular national park that surrounds the Nevado del Ruiz volcano. They also said that schools within a six-mile (10 kilometer) radius of the volcano’s crater will hold classes online only when children return home from Easter holidays next week. The governor of the Colombian province of Caldas, Luis Carlos Velasquez, says the steps are preventative measures.