QUITO, Ecuador — Ecuador’s Tungurahua volcano shot columns of ash six miles into the air yesterday, as officials ordered the evacuation of 3,000 villagers living near its slopes.

Some 1,000 villagers from the western flanks of the 16,575-foot volcano fled their homes for shelters at dawn, director of Civil Defense, Roberto Rodriguez, said. He said 11 families who refused to leave, fearing looters, were removed by force.

“We’ve taken all of the precautions possible,” President Correa told reporters yesterday, adding that a state of emergency already in place in the area will be extended for 60 days.

Experts at the Geophysics Institute warn that the intense activity shows no sign of slowing down, and compared it to the massive 2006 Tungurahua eruptions that buried entire villages, leaving at least four dead and thousands homeless.

“The volcano has entered a new explosive eruption cycle, a process which does not seem to be slowing down,” said Hugo Yepez, director of the Geophysics Institute.

Tungurahua, located 95 miles southeast of the capital of Quito, has been active since 1999.