Lava buries other buildings in La Palma

The volcanic eruption on the Canary island of La Palma continued on Sunday without interruption.

Volcanic eruption on the Canary island of La Palma Keep going strong on Sunday. Since September 19, the previously unnamed Mount Fire of Cumbre Vieja in the south of the island has spewed large amounts of lava, smoke and ash. In the five weeks since, lava has slowly but relentlessly buried one block after another – on Sunday it was already 2,270, state television station RTVE reported.

About 900 hectares, equivalent to more than 1200 football fields, covered with a crust of black lava several meters thick: residential areas, banana plantations, roads, irrigation basins, greenhouses, gardens as well as forests and trees.

For those affected, about 7,000 of whom have had to leave their homes, this is a slow-moving disaster. The extent of the overall damage currently remains unclear. Weeks ago, the island government spoke of €400 million, but that estimate is now out of date.

Many light to moderate earthquakes also caught people’s nerves. The Earth shook about 80 times on Sunday alone. Volcanologists cannot say how long the eruption will last. It may take weeks or months. The volcano’s last eruption ended in 1971 after 24 days, the previous one in 1949 after 42 days.

sda / dpa / shop