The Cumbre Vieja volcano on the Spanish island of La Palma in the Atlantic Ocean, which has erupted since September 19, has increased the emission of lava and ash in the past hours, which led to the suspension of lessons in schools and air traffic. Since the eruption of the volcano, a seismic swarm has been created that keeps the nearby residents in watch, and 7 thousand people have already been expelled.
The most affected residents of the Spanish island live in the Aridane Valley, for whom the Volcanic Emergency Plan for the Canary Islands (Pevolca) recommended to limit their stay on the street due to the high concentration of PM-10 particles in the air. NSMeanwhile, face-to-face lessons have been suspended in schools in neighboring municipalities.
In the next few days, air circulation will be affected not only in La Palma, but also in other Canary Islands, since most of the lava expelled by the volcano flows through past lava flows. The shape of the cone of the volcano, which has so far affected 967 hectares, is constantly changing.
50,000 tons of sulfur
In fact, the volcano suffered last week Partial collapse of the main cone. Then, the Volcanic Institute of the Canary Islands (Involcan) warned of a significant increase in gas emissions, something they described as “nonsense”, as 50,000 tons of sulfur dioxide were recorded.
Cumbre Vieja entered its volcanic phase on September 19, when it released rivers of lava that began to slowly descend until it finally reached the sea, ten days later. A few days ago, the European Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) in Copernicus reported that sulfur dioxide emissions from the volcano reached the Caribbean, more than 5,000 km away.