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Canary Islands volcano eruption could last for three months, experts say

September 22, 2021

A volcanic eruption in Spain’s Canary Islands could last three months, experts have said.

The Canary Islands Volcanology Institute said on Wednesday that the eruption on the island of La Palma and its aftermath could last for up to 84 days.

A cross is seen as lava and smoke rise following the eruption of a volcano on the Island of La Palma, in Los Llanos de Aridane, Spain September 21, 2021. Picture taken September 21, 2021. REUTERS/Nacho Doce
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Since last Sunday’s eruption, powerful rivers of lava have swallowed up 185 buildings

The institute said it had looked at calculations of the length of previous eruptions on the archipelago, which like the latest eruption were followed by heavy lava flows and lasting seismic activity.

This means residents could still be at risk of earthquakes, lava flows, toxic gases, volcanic ash and acid rain.

The institute also reported that Tuesday night saw a strong increase in the number of smaller eruptions that hurl rocks and cinders high into the air from the La Palma volcano.

Since last Sunday’s eruption, powerful rivers of lava, up to six meters high, have swallowed up 185 buildings, mostly homes in the countryside.

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The lava now covers 154 hectares, according to the volcanology institute.

On Tuesday, the lava flows were heading downhill toward the island’s more densely populated coast.

Lava from a volcano eruption flows destroying houses on the island of La Palma in the Canaries, Spain, Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2021. A dormant volcano on a small Spanish island in the Atlantic Ocean erupted on Sunday, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people. Huge plumes of black-and-white smoke shot out from a volcanic ridge where scientists had been monitoring the accumulation of molten lava below the surface PIC:AP
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Thousands of people have been evacuated since the eruption

Emergency services on the island attempted to divert some of the lava by using front-loaders to clear a path for the molten rock to follow, hoping to steer it away from properties.

However, officials said they did not know if it would work.

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Slow motion footage shows volcano’s power

Some 1,000 people were evacuated later in the day from the neighbourhood of Todoque on the shoreline, bringing the total number of evacuated people to around 6,000.

The meeting of lava – which is more than 1,000C – with a body of water, could cause explosions and produce clouds of toxic gas.

A house burns due to lava from the eruption of a volcano in the Cumbre Vieja national park at Los Llanos de Aridane, on the Canary Island of La Palma, September 20, 2021. REUTERS/Borja Suarez TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
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Homes have already been destroyed but the eruption’s aftermath could last for up to 84 days

Prompt evacuations have helped avoid any casualties from the eruption, though damage to homes, infrastructure and farmland is significant, officials have said.

The volcano has also been spewing out between 8,000 and 10,500 tons of sulfur dioxide – which also affects the lungs – every day, the institute added.