The U.S. Embassy in the capital of Reykjavik told Americans to avoid the area. The eruption, which created lava fountains about 300 feet high, was larger than expected, volcanologists in Iceland said.

Iceland’s capital Reykjavik is home to just 233,000 people, just over half of which live in the city proper. Despite being a small city on the world scale, Reykjavik punches way above its weight ...