New river of lava threatens even more buildings on La Palma
Lava flows from a volcano on the Canary island of La Palma, Spain, Saturday Oct. 2, 2021. An erupting volcano on a Spanish island off northwest Africa has blown open another fissure on its hillside. The new fissure is the third to crack open since the Cumbre Vieja crater erupted on La Palma island Sept. 19.[AP Photo/Daniel Roca]
A new lava flow belched Saturday from the La Palma volcano, threatening to spread more destruction on the Atlantic Ocean island, where over 1,000 buildings have already been engulfed or badly damaged by streams of molten rock.
The partial collapse of the volcanic cone overnight gave birth to a new lava stream that started to follow a similar path down the Cumbre Vieja ridge toward the western shore of the island to the ocean.
Authorities said the new lava flow is within the area that was hastily evacuated following the Sept. 19 eruption, when 6,000 residents were forced to flee their homes and farms.
Police let residents whose homes could now be in danger make trips to save what they could. Trucks entered the exclusion zone empty and left with mattresses, furniture and other belongings.
Emergency official Miguel Ángel Morcuende said experts were closely watching the delta of new land being formed off the island’s coast since the main lava flow reached the sea last week. He said that parts of it could collapse, causing explosions and large waves, but that would not pose a danger since the immediate area is already evacuated.
La Palma’s airport was operational again after being closed for several days due to volcanic ash.
La Palma, home to about 85,000 people, is part of Spain’s Canary Islands, an archipelago located off northwest Africa.