Even three weeks after the eruption, the volcano continues to rage at Cumbre Vieja on the island of La Palma. Part of the volcano collapsed. Large amounts of lava emerge.
Update from Monday, 11.10.2021, 8.25 a.m.: On the Canary Island of La Palma there has been “enormous destruction”. That reports the volcanological institute of the Canaries “Involcan”. The northern flank of the volcano collapsed on Saturday (see first report from 10.10.2021).
As a result, new lava flows with temperatures of up to 1240 degrees Celsius have been released, according to the experts. The lava mass flooded a disused industrial park at a speed of 700 meters per hour, it was said on Sunday evening. Recordings on Twitter show the force of nature:
Así avanza la colada de lava por la zona del polígono industrial / This is how the lava flow moves through the area of the industrial park pic.twitter.com/Ms4u1BBAPH
— INVOLCAN (@involcan) October 9, 2021
Among other things, an earthquake with 21 seismic movements was measured on Sunday (see update of 10.10.2021).
Update from Sunday, 10.10.2021, 10.15 p.m.: The eruption of the volcano Cumbre Vieja keeps the Canary Island of La Palma in suspense. As reported by the US broadcaster CNN with reference to the Spanish Institute of Geology, blocks of molten lava that are as high as three-story houses roll down a hill on the island. After the partial collapse of a cone of the Cumbre Vieja volcano on Saturday (October 9th, 2021), these blocks of material were released.
On Sunday (10.10.2021) there were also 21 seismic movements, the largest earthquake on that day was 3.8. Since the first volcanic eruption on September 19, 2021, the now eight lava flows have destroyed 1186 buildings on La Palma, 493 hectares of land have been swallowed up by the lava so far. More than 6000 out of a total of 83,000 inhabitants on the Canary Island of La Palma have so far been brought to safety from the volcano.
| La Palma | Canarian island |
|---|---|
| country | Spain |
| location | Northwest coast of Africa |
| capital city | Santa Cruz de la Palma |
| area | Area: 708.3 km² |
| population | 84,793 (2019) |
Volcanic eruption on La Palma damages tourism, infrastructure and banana cultivation
The volcanic eruption on La Palma not only harms the infrastructure and tourism on the Canary Island. Banana cultivation is also badly affected. Around half of all islanders live on it, either directly or indirectly. Added to this is the restricted air traffic – according to authorities’ assessments, air traffic could be impaired again on Monday due to the ash cloud, and the airport on Tenerife could also be affected.
First message from Sunday, October 10th, 2021, 12.50 p.m.: La Palma – The Canary Island of La Palma is still suffering from the severe consequences of the volcanic eruption. In mid-September, the Cumbre Vieja volcano erupted for the first time in 50 years. Since then, the Spanish island has been repeatedly shaken by earthquakes and entire regions have been destroyed by newly emerging lava flows – an end is not yet in sight.
Volcanic eruption on La Palma: ash clouds are several kilometers high
After large amounts of lava had already emerged from the volcano, the northern flank of the volcanic cone in the Cumbre Vieja collapsed, so that a new lava flow formed. The affected region had previously been evacuated. The island recorded its strongest earthquake since the eruption on October 7 with a magnitude of 4.1, according to the Spanish National Geological Institute. This created a side stream of lava that destroyed numerous areas.
In addition, the volcano incessantly spits out ash and smoke. The ash clouds sometimes reach a height of up to three and a half kilometers. As a result, air traffic had to be suspended on October 7th until further notice – due to the layer of ash on the taxiways, the airport was “not operational”, the airport operator Aena explained on Twitter. A bitter decision for the tourism industry, which has already suffered major losses since the volcanic eruption due to numerous cancellations.
Volcanic eruption on La Palma: Already several hundred million euros in damage
But the island’s infrastructure and agriculture have also suffered enormously since the eruption of the Cumbre Vieja. The damage caused is currently estimated at around 400 million euros. Around 1150 were destroyed by the lava making its way to the sea. 6,000 people had to leave their homes – but no one has been harmed since the outbreak.
Pictures of a cat trapped in an empty pool of water caused great excitement online. There is lava around the pool. An animal welfare organization got involved and called for help that the cat be supplied with food via a drone until it can be evacuated from the pool. (tt / tab)
Rubriklistenbild: © Kike Rincón / dpa
