A huge explosion around midnight alarmed around 30 remaining residents of the town of Chaiten, about 10 kilometers (six miles) from the volcano of the same name.

Authorities stepped in to force the stragglers, who thought the volcanic activity might wane, to leave, warning they would be arrested if they did not move to safer ground.

Thursday morning just a small group of journalists and photographers remained, including AFP, and strong eruptions could still be felt.

Wednesday a thick cloud of ash from the erupting volcano in southern Chile spread across a swath of South America, prompting fears of health crisis for the people caught in its wake.

Thousands of Chileans have already fled their homes since the volcano, located 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) south of Santiago near Chile's border with Argentina, first began erupting on Friday.