A 29-year-old man from Kansas was killed by lightning while hiking on Mount Etna in Sicily, after being struck in an exposed area above the tree line, Italian firefighters said.The man was hit on Sunday evening and rescued from the volcano’s slopes by helicopter. Medical personnel later declared him dead. His name has not been released.The incident occurred as Etna continues to experience prolonged volcanic activity. Authorities have closed large sections of the volcano’s slopes to hikers because of the ongoing activity. However, it was not immediately clear whether the man was inside one of the restricted areas.The recent volcanic activity also disrupted flights at nearby Catania Airport, which was closed for much of the previous week because of ash emissions.Officials said lightning has caused more deaths on Mount Etna in recent decades than volcanic activity itself. The last fatalities directly linked to an eruption occurred in 1987.