New footage of the volcanic eruption in Canary Island
The lava from the volcanic eruption in La Palma continues. The president has said it's heading for the coast, unlikely to damage more homes.
The volcanic eruption in the Canary Island of La Palma that happened Sunday afternoon has forced the evacuation of over 5,000 people.The eruption began at 3:12pm local time on Montaña Rajada, in the area of Cabeza de Vaca in El Paso.
So far, no victims have been reported, but several homes have been completely destroyed, according to the mayor of El Paso, Sergio Rodríguez Fernández. The Canary Islands president Ángel Víctor Torres has said it's unlikely more people will need to evacuate as the lava is moving towards the coast and should only cause material damage. Torres said, "everything points to there not being new eruption points." Last night, it was announced that there are two fissures, which are 200 meters apart, from where the lava was emerging.
El Paso mayor Rodríguez Fernández said, the area is totally evacuated. It is safe for people, but not for infrastructure."
The volcanic eruption occurred after a series of small tremors, called an earthquake swarm, which began on September 11th in Cumbre Vieja National Park. That then sparked the eruption in Teneguía, a volcano which had been inactive since 1971.
Canary Islands president Torres expressed his solidarity with the people of the island. "It is too early to know if this will last X days or weeks," he said.
You can follow our live coverage of the eruption here.