Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico – The Colima volcano, which lies near Mexico's west coast on the border of the states of Colima and Jalisco, sparked into life last Thursday, causing ash to rain down onto communities below and forcing lava to make its steady retreat down the side of the crater.

The eruption of the Colima volcano has led to the evacuation of some 670 people in the states of Colima and Jalisco and the declaration of emergency in five municipalities in the state of Colima, large parts of which are covered with ash.

"The communities in this 12-kilometer radius are very small and don't exceed 800 inhabitants. They have all been evacuated," said Luis Felipe Puente, national civil protection coordinator.

The five municipalities affected by the declaration of emergency were Colima, Comala, Coquimatlán, Cuauhtémoc and Villa de Alvarez.

The volcano continued to spew incandescent material on Friday, leading to a restriction on movement in a 12-km (7.5-mile) radius around the base of the volcano and the preventive evacuation of some 500 additional people from the communities of La Yerbabuena, La Becerrera and others.

Colima, which rises to a height of 3,820 meters (12,525 feet) above sea level, is one of Mexico's most active volcanoes along with Popocatepetl, which straddles the central states of Mexico, Puebla and Morelos.

Experts say the recent volcanic activity, reaching heights of up to 7 km (4 miles), is the largest explosion by the volcano in the last century.

Authorities are continuing to monitor the volcano's activities. The interior ministry in Mexico said that there are three likely scenarios: a 1913-esque explosion (one of the largest in its history), a collapse of the volcano's dome, or a reduction in activity. Meanwhile, Colima's national airport operations have reportedly resumed after being suspended on Saturday due to the ash falling in the area.