Whoopi Goldberg was unable to appear on "The View" on Monday, July 6, after being stranded in Sicily due to an eruption from Mount Etna. The active volcano's activity led to the closure of local airports, stranding the television personality.
Goldberg shared her predicament in a pre-recorded video that was played during the show. "I am in Sicily right now, and Mount Etna, who is one of our active volcanoes here in Italy, decided to go off today," she explained. "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."
She humorously described her situation as her "story just takes the cake," joking, "A volcano ate my homework!"
Mount Etna, Europe's largest volcano, began an eruptive cycle on June 26, with an increase in lava flow documented on July 5, which resulted in flight cancellations.
Goldberg was not the only co-host absent from Monday's broadcast. Ana Navarro was unable to attend due to weather conditions in Florida, and Sara Haines was dealing with unspecified storm damage. Navarro announced her absence on Instagram, while Haines' situation was mentioned by co-host Joy Behar.
Due to the trio's unexpected absences, "The View" producers enlisted Joy Behar, who typically does not appear on Mondays and was returning from her own hiatus, to fill in. She joined co-hosts Alyssa Farah Griffin and Sunny Hostin for the episode. "So you may be asking, 'Why am I here on a Monday?' I asked myself the same question," Behar told viewers. "But [producer] Brian [Teta] begged me to come in — on his knees, where he belongs. Why? Because we are down three co-hosts today."
Behar lightheartedly commented on her co-hosts' reasons for absence, jokingly suggesting Goldberg was using "the old volcano excuse" and questioning Navarro's reason for being unable to leave Miami. She also quipped about Haines' storm damage, noting it seemed to be a singular issue.
