The eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano in the Canary Islands gives no truce | There are already more than 300 destroyed buildings

The area affected by the lava expelled by the Cumbre Vieja volcano, on the Spanish island of La Palma, in the Canary Islands, it increased by 50% on the last day and there are already 6,100 evacuees and 320 buildings destroyed. Experts estimate that the rash could last around 55 days, or at least until November. Meanwhile, authorities are closely monitoring the arrival of lava flows into the sea, which could cause heavy explosions and even acid rain.

As the days go by, the situation in the vicinity of the volcano becomes more difficult, especially for the evacuees, especially 400 tourists, that they had to abandon their homes.

The lava, which continues to force its way into the sea, has already left 153 hectares buried under stones, fire and ashes, according to data from the Volcanological Institute of the Canary Islands from satellite images of the Copernicus program.

The last map provided by this emergency monitoring program shows the situation at 8:14 a.m. on Tuesday, and verifies that compared to the previous one, at 7:50 p.m. on the 20th, the area affected increased from 103 hectares to 153 hectares, or about 50 percent.

Smoke and ash in the Canaries

One of the concerns of the island authorities is the large amount of ash and smoke that causes every day between 6,140 and 11,500 tonnes of sulfur dioxide (SO2) are emitted into the atmosphere, according to measurements carried out by the Volcanological Institute of the Canary Islands (Involcan).

Sulfur dioxide is an irritating and poisonous gas whose concentration for short periods is very harmful for ecosystems and for health, because it can irritate the respiratory tract, cause bronchitis, asthmatic reactions, reflex spasms, respiratory arrest and congest the bronchi of asthmatics.

Eruption until November

Scientists are trying to estimate how long it will take for the volcano to stop erupting. According to Involcan, it could between 24 and 84 days, with an average of 55 days, or what is the same, it could continue to expel lava until at least November or even reach December.

The data emerged from the analysis of the historical eruptions that have occurred on the island of La Palma since the last one, which took place in It was in 1971 and lasted 24 days, the longest, in Tehuya, in 1585, which lasted 84 days.

The scientific committee which advises the crisis cabinet calculated in 200 meters per hour the speed at which lava moves towards the sea and also estimates that the deformation of the soil in the area near the eruption amounts to 28 centimeters.

Thermal shock with the sea

The arrival of the lava to the sea was originally scheduled for Monday but the rivers of lava slowed down.

It is a meeting which is particularly dreaded because it can generate explosions, waves of boiling water or toxic clouds, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) page.

The lava “walks inexorably towards the sea”, lamented the president of the Canary Islands region, Ángel Víctor Torres, who described “the powerlessness in the face of the progress of this washing which has already washed away houses in this area dedicated to agriculture., and that it will continue with other houses on its way to the sea. “

The impressive gray and orange lava tongues continue to descend slowly from the volcano devastating the trees, roads and houses they find in their path, according to images released by authorities and neighbors.

The regional government of the Canary Islands decreed a “2 nautical mile exclusion radius” around where they should land lava flows, and asked the curious not to move in the area.