Watch this Chilean volcano shoot a massive ash cloud 40,000 feet into the sky

Chile's Calbuco volcano forced local towns into a red alert on Wednesday when it erupted for the first time since 1972.

Four thousand people had to evacuate the area, about 625 miles south of Santiago, Chile's capital. The Guardian notes that there were no reports of deaths, injuries, or missing persons after the eruption, which created a large ash cloud that extended 40,000 feet into the sky.

Alejandro Verges, the Los Lagos region's emergency director, told The Guardian that the eruption was "a surprise," since the Calbuco volcano wasn't under observation. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet will visit the impacted region on Thursday. —Meghan DeMaria