Lava Flows Destroy Homes and Infrastructure on La Palma Island

Lava rivers emerging from the Cumbre Vieja volcano have destroyed hundreds of homes on La Palma, an island in the Canary Islands archipelago in Spain.

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5,000 People Evacuated As Volcano Erupts On La Palma Island

After the eruption started last Sunday, the emergency level has sharply increased in the municipalities where the risk is exceptionally high, which are Tazacorte, El Paso, Fuencaliente, Mazo, and Los Llanos de Aridane, where a total of 35.000 people live

The Spanish government spokeswoman Isabel Rodriguez assured that the Executive branch has no final assessment of the damage caused or an evaluation of the eruption's duration. She also warned that when the lava flow will reach the sea, gas releases will have to be controlled.

So far, 6,000 people have been evacuated and 183 houses have been affected, as well as 200 other infrastructures, such as swimming pools and tennis courts. No deaths have occurred up to now. The impact of the lava has affected 300 - 400 farms. For this reason, the Canary Islands Government announced the granting of US$1.2 million in subsidies to help alleviate the damages.

Meanwhile, reinforcements continue to arrive in La Palma to help in the evacuation tasks and the extinction of fires. Among them are three new forest Spanish Air Force seaplanes moved on the place on Tuesday.

Spain's President Pedro Sanchez has appealed to "maintain prudence" to all the inhabitants of La Palma and announced that his administration is already working to activate different actions to help the people affected.

The Cumbre Vieja volcano is one of two volcanoes existing on the island. The last recorded eruption in La Palma was in October 1971, when the lava flow went on for three weeks.