translated from Spanish: La Palma: the stunning images of the eruption of a volcano in the Canary Islands

After several days of unrest, a volcano located on the island of La Palma, in the Canary Islands (Spain), erupted this Sunday at 15:12 (local time).

According to local media, a large explosion was felt in the area followed by a huge column of smoke and the expulsion of pyroclasts.

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES

Although the area surrounding the volcano — Cumbre Vieja National Park — is not mostly populated, authorities began with the preventive evacuation of people with reduced mobility in nearby towns. It is estimated that there could be 10,000 evacuees.

The phenomenon comes after an unusual seismic activity began on Saturday, September 11, with a string of tremors that anticipated the volcanic crisis.

This situation led the authorities to raise the alert to “yellow traffic light” in the area because of the high risk it meant days ago.

The President of the Regional Government of the Canary Islands, Angel Victor Torres, asked the population to “refrain from approaching” the place.

For its part, the council of La Palma (local government body), requested through its Twitter account “extreme precautions and not approach the area of the eruption to avoid unnecessary risks.”

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES

According to statements collected by Radio Televisión Canaria (RTVC), the president of the council of La Palma, Mariano Hernandez Zapata, stated that so far there is no person affected.

The authority also indicated that it is estimated that the volcano has “five mouths” of which “at least two are emanating quite a lot of magma.”

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES

For his part, the President of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, announced that he is going to the Canary Islands to “know first-hand” the situation, suspending his trip to the United States to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations (UN).

This is the first time that volcanic activity has been recorded in La Palma since the eruption of Teneguía, in 1971, that left two fatalities due to the lack of oxygen due to getting very close to the volcano, thousands of evacuees and damage to crops.

Original source in Spanish

Related Posts

Add Comment