Such a large liquidation volume appeared after Ethereum bounced off the support line at $1,715 and gained around 4% to its value. The squeeze has most likely appeared because of traders' and investors' belief that the second biggest cryptocurrency on the market will drop below $1,700 and rush to the next support at around $1,500.
As for the whole market, total liquidations are sitting at approximately $809 million, which is considered far below average for the relatively low volatility we are seeing on the market today.