In pictures: the volcanic eruption of Cumbre Vieja in the Canaries

Published on : 09/20/2021 – 14:17

The eruption of Cumbre Vieja on the Spanish island of La Palma, in the Canary archipelago, continues to wreak havoc. The volcano has already destroyed “a hundred” houses, devastated by the lava which continued to flow towards the coast, Monday, September 20, according to local authorities.

“Currently, we have 5,000 evacuees and around 100 houses destroyed in the municipalities of Los Llanos (de Aridane) and El Paso y Tazacorte,” said Lorena Hernandez Labrador, city councilor in Los Llanos de Aridane. The eruption on Sunday of Cumbre Vieja, the first on the island of La Palma in 50 years, has not claimed any victims at this stage.

According to the president of the Canary Islands region, Angel Victor Torres, the Cumbre Vieja volcano contains between 17 and 20 million cubic meters of lava. For this reason, the eruption “will continue”, he warned in a video posted on Twitter. “According to the technical committee, everything seems to indicate that there will be no new eruption points”, added the elected official, assuring that “the safety” of the inhabitants was “guaranteed”.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who was due to go to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, decided to go immediately to the island where he arrived on Sunday evening to follow the development of the situation and operations .

The Cumbre Vieja volcano had been under close surveillance for a week, due to a huge surge in seismic activity. The last eruption on the island of La Palma took place 50 years ago, in 1971.

With AFP and Reuters