La Palma volcano | news summary for Thursday 18 November
Cumbre Vieja volcanic eruption: live updates
Headlines
- Cumbre Vieja eruption now active for nearly nine weeks, after beginning on 19 September
- Unfavorable conditions for flights on Thursday due to ash and winds
- Wednesday saw number of tremors spike, with 249 reported during the day
- Volunteer worker killed in exclusion zone while cleaning volcanic ash
- Eruption has released enough energy to power Canary Islands for 36 years
- Surface area of lava flow now covers over 1,042 hectares
- More than 2,600 buildings have been damaged by the lava flow
- Delta formed in Atlantic Ocean by lava flows now covers over 40 hectares
- Around 7,000 of the island's 85,000 residents have been evacuated
Useful information
- AS speaks to expert in volcanology about the effects of lava reaching the sea
- The lowdown on the active volcanoes on the Canary Islands
- Where are most volcanoes found on Earth?
WATCH: Dust devil forms at the mouth of the Cumbre Vieja
The volcano on the Spanish island of La Palma has now been active for close to two months and is continuing to cause chaos for residents, most recently with a swirl of volcanic dust clearly visible in this ABC News footage.
Real Madrid to play in charity game for Cumbre Viaje victims
Real Madrid have announced that they will play in a charity game against local side CD Tenerife to raise funds for those affected by the Cumbre Vieja volcano. The two sides will field teams of club legends in the game held on December 17.
The funds will be allocated to those affected by the eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano, which has already been active for close to two months. The match will be held at the CD Tenerife stadium, Heliodoro Rodríguez López, which has a capacity of just over 22,000 spectators .
La Palma lava continues its advance
Security and emergency services of the Canary Islands have published images of the new lava flow located between the mountains of Todoque and La Laguna.
This is said to be advancing at a speed of 70 metres per hour.
Spanish PM to return to La Palma
Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, is to visit La Palma on Wednesday, in what will be his seventh trip to the island since the Cumbre Vieja volcano began erupting in mid-September.
AEMET image of erupting volcano
The Agencia Estatal de Meteorología (AEMET), Spain's weather service, has shared this photo of the erupting Cumbre Viejavolcano, whose plume of smoke and ash has come into contact with abundant cloud cover today after rainful on La Palma during the morning:
Aerial view of the eruption
On its Twitter feed, Radio Televisión Canaria has posted these striking live aerial images of the Cumbre Vieja eruption:
In this handout photograph released by the Spanish Military Emergency Unit (UME) on Thursday, a UME member monitors the lava flows from La Laguna, as the Cumbre Vieja volcano continues to erupt on La Palma.
(Photo by Luismi Ortiz / UME / AFP)
Time-lapse video of eruption
The Canary Islands Volcanology Institute (Involcan) has published this time-lapse video, taken over a period of 13 minutes, of the erupting Cumbre Vieja volcano:
Where are most volcanoes located?
AS USA's Greg Heilman looks at how volcanoes are created and where they are most likely to be found on Earth.
Over 300 earthquakes in a day
The Cumbre Vieja volcano has registered 319 earthquakes in a one day - the highest number of earthquakes in 24 hours since it began erupting on 19 September.
Most of the 300+ earthquakes recorded in the last 24 hours occurred at a depth of between 10 and 15 kilometres in Mazo and Fuencaliente on the island of La Palma.
Video: Cumbre Vieja volcano continues erupting
The strombolian activity continued in Cumbre Vieja at 13.00 Canarian time on Thursday.
Euractiv - Maria Jose Blanco, the spokesperson from the Volcanic Emergency Plan of the Canary Islands (Pevolca), has said there has been a drop in the volcanic activity, including the levels of sulphur dioxide and seismic activity. However, experts said there was still no indication of when it will come to a complete end.
The Cumbre Vieja is currently “in a more stable process and a lower level of activity,” Blanco said, stressing that there is no end in sight for the volcanic eruption.
Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
Deteriorating air quality prompts school closures, flight cancellations
The volcanic eruption on the Spanish island of La Palma eased on Wednesday, but air quality is seriously deteriorating, prompting school closures and flight cancellations due to ash, on Wednesday.
Dust storm near volcano
A dust devil formed near the Cumbre Vieja volcano, which continues to erupt on the island of La Palma.
Involcan - Plume gases are being monitored every day using Fourier transform IR spectroscopy measurements.
Lava flows towards the sea under the Cumbre Vieja volcano as it continues to erupt in La Palma, Spain.
The volcano has been erupting since September 19, 2021 after weeks of seismic activity, resulting in millions of euros worth of damage to properties.
Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
Evolution of lava flows
This graphic posted by the Spanish Forestry Service shows the evolution of the lava flows from Cumbre Vieja and the formation of a delta in the Atlantic Ocean.
Cumbre Vieja on Thursday morning
The La Palma eruption is still showing no sign of waning, as the latest images from the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute attest.
La Palma rocked by hundreds of tremors on Wednesday
It had appeared that the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma was running out of steam with lower sulphur dioxide emissions and decreased seismic activity. However, over the past two day, each day has seen a doubling or more on the previous day's tremor count.
Between midnight and 6 pm local time in La Palma on Wednesday, the National Geographic Institute registered 249 earthquakes. The largest was a 4.7 magnitude with a level IV intensity that shook the whole island a little after 12:30 pm.
Seismologist Itahiza Domínguez from the National Geographic Institute told El País "We have to observe if the trend continues," but that it could mean a reversal of the reduced activity of late.
"I'm on the verge of a nervous breakdown everyday. My house feels like it's going to fall every time there is an earthquake."
Development of seismic activity on La Palma
This video display shows the seismic activity on La Palma around the Cumbre Vieja volcano since 1 October courtesy of the National Geographic Institute of Spain.
Spanish Military Emergency Unit continuing clean-up operation
In this handout photograph taken and released by the Spanish Military Emergency Unit (UME), UME members clean the ash-covered areas in Las Manchas, following the eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano.
It has been nearly two months since Cumbre Vieja began erupting, forcing more than 6,000 people out of their homes as the lava burnt its way across huge swathes of land on the western side of La Palma.
Photo: AFP PHOTO / HANDOUT/ SPANISH MILITARY UNIT (UME)
Volcanic ash raining down on La Palma
The ash plume from the Cumbre Vieja volcano remains immense and has been wreaking havoc on La Palma, blanketing communities and even bringing down greenhouses on banana plantations due to the weight of the ash accumulating.
Geology Hub has released a report based on the acitivity seen in La Palma. There are hopes that the volcano is in its waning stage and the eruption could end sometime soon. However, geologists are unable to predict exactly when activity may cease.
Images of dust devil captured close to eruption site
AccuWeather has released new images showing a "large dust devil" gaining energy close to the volcano's crater. Dust devils are mostly harmless, unlike a tornado, and this one was created by the high temperatures being caused by the eruption.
The destruction continues
With the eruption going on two months, millions of dollars' worth of damage has been caused by the volcano. Until the crisis ends, government officials will not be able to evaluate the full scale of the destruction.
Cumbre Vieja eruption live updates: welcome
Hello and welcome to our live blog for Thursday 18 November 2021, bringing you the latest news and information on the ongoing eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma.