Mount Etna, Europe's largest active volcano, sent a massive ash cloud over eastern Sicily on Sunday morning local time and shut down Catania Airport, stranding Whoopi Goldberg on the island and leaving Monday's episode of The View with only three of its regular co-hosts on set.
Goldberg, 70, appeared via video link from Sicily to explain her absence. Two other co-hosts, Ana Navarro and Sara Haines, were also missing, for unrelated reasons. That left 83-year-old Joy Behar to anchor the broadcast alongside Sunny Hostin, Alyssa Farrah Griffin, and guest co-host Michelle Buteau.
The scene was light on gravity but heavy on irony: a daytime talk show that rarely misses a chance to lecture Americans about climate emergencies found half its panel grounded by forces no government program can regulate.
Mount Etna had been erupting for multiple days, one reference in the Daily Mail's report puts it at nine days straight, before ejecting a large volcanic ash cloud Sunday morning, local time. Authorities triggered a red alert for the area around the volcano, which sits on Sicily's east coast.
Catania Airport, the main transport hub for eastern Sicily and a gateway to one of Italy's busiest tourist corridors, suspended incoming flights due to safety concerns while officials assessed the ash cloud's path. ITA, Italy's national carrier, cancelled all flights to and from Catania until 2 p.m. Monday, local time. Several planes were diverted to Palermo, on Sicily's northern coast.
Travelers with affected bookings were urged to contact their airline, cold comfort for anyone stuck on the island with no clear departure window.
Goldberg checked in with the show's audience from her location in Sicily, delivering her predicament with characteristic humor:
"I am in Sicily right now. Mount Etna, who is one of our active volcanoes here in Italy, decided to go off today."
She said she and others had spent most of the day trying to get back to the United States, but that all airports on the island were closed. That claim went slightly further than what airport authorities actually announced, Catania's incoming flights were suspended, yet planes were being diverted to Palermo, suggesting at least one Sicilian airport remained at least partially operational.
"We have spent most of the day trying to get back to [the] United States and all of the airports are closed here. So I will be back as soon as I can."
Goldberg capped the moment with a quip: "I know that we got all kinds of stories about our different vacations. Well, I think my story just takes the cake! A volcano ate my homework!"
The Daily Mail noted it had contacted a representative for Goldberg for comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.
Back in the studio, Behar opened the show by acknowledging the unusual staffing situation. She told viewers that producer Brian Teta had "begged" her to come in.
"So you may be asking, 'Why am I here on a Monday?' I asked myself the same question. But [producer Brian Teta] begged me to come in. Begged me, on his knees, where he belongs. Why? Because we are down three cohosts today."
Behar, whose health and mobility have drawn attention in recent months, gamely ran through the roster of absences. She joked that Goldberg was "using the old volcano excuse" before rolling the video clip from Sicily.
She then turned to the other missing panelists. Navarro, she said, was stuck in Miami because of the weather. Haines was dealing with storm damage at home.
"Ana is stuck in Miami because of the weather. It's always hot there, what's the problem? Sara is dealing with storm damage. How many people are dealing with storm damage? Anybody in this group? No, just Sara!"
Neither the specific weather event affecting Navarro nor the nature of Haines's storm damage was explained further.
Three of six regular co-hosts absent on the same day is unusual even for a program accustomed to rotating fill-ins. Behar herself stepped away from the show earlier this year for a European theater tour, requiring guest hosts to cover her seat. The View has long relied on a deep bench, but Monday's episode tested the limits of that model.
Michelle Buteau filled in as the fourth chair. Hostin and Griffin rounded out the panel. Whether the show's producers had any advance warning that three hosts would be unavailable remains unclear.
The episode landed during a period of heightened scrutiny for the program. ABC has been challenging an FCC probe into The View, arguing that regulatory pressure on the show raises First Amendment concerns ahead of the 2026 elections. That fight has kept the show's editorial posture in the news well beyond its usual daytime audience.
Mount Etna is described as the largest volcano in Europe. Its eruptions are not rare, the mountain has been active in various cycles for years, but this particular event was intense enough to trigger a red alert and ground commercial aviation across eastern Sicily. The ash cloud's reach forced ITA to pull an entire day's worth of Catania service, and authorities were still assessing the situation as of Monday afternoon local time.
For the thousands of tourists and residents who depend on Catania Airport, the disruption was more than an inconvenience. It was a reminder that volcanic activity operates on its own schedule, indifferent to flight itineraries, broadcast calendars, or celebrity vacation plans.
Goldberg's stranding was the most visible consequence of the eruption, at least on American television. But the real story was the broader shutdown: diverted flights, a red alert zone, and an ash cloud whose path officials were still tracking.
Behar, for her part, has never been shy about sharing her views, whether touting democratic socialism on air or drawing fire from her own co-hosts for treating a Republican guest with civility. On Monday, she simply had to show up and hold the table together. The volcano handled the rest.
Several questions lingered after Monday's broadcast. Had Goldberg been able to leave Sicily by the time the episode aired, or was she still waiting for flights to resume? Was Palermo Airport fully operational, offering an alternate route off the island? And what storm damage kept Haines away, and where?
None of those details were addressed on air or in available reporting.
Nature doesn't negotiate with broadcast schedules. And no amount of hot takes from a daytime panel can keep a volcano from doing exactly what it wants.
