Volcano threatens Goma prison
Africa's most active volcano, Nyamuragira, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, began erupting on the night of 6 November 2011.
The volcano is located 20km north-west of the town of Goma, on Congo's eastern border with Rwanda, and by 8 November 15km of lava flow had been measured.
An eruption in 2003 destroyed the files of many prisoners held in Goma's notorious Munzenze prison. This was one of the reasons given by officials as late as 2010 for the slow pace of justice for remand prisoners at Goma.
Conditions at Goma prison have reportedly improved in recent years, in particular due to the erection of a separate building for women being held in the prison. In 2009 the prison was the site of a mass rape when 20 female prisoners were raped during an attempted prison escape.
Approximately 1000 prisoners are kept in the prison, originally designed for 150 inmates.