Atlantic Ocean Mega-Tsunami Alert - Volcano on La Palma is about to blow

[Chris]

There are reports of small landslides off the Western Coast and new eruptions underwater, also off the Western coast. The large slab of land we are all worried about has moved a few inches, causing the landslides, but not as much as during the last eruption, when it slid towards the sea by 11 feet.

The eruption itself is getting worse, more villages were evacuated and there is now a health hazard as the lava flow nears the ocean, which will release toxic gases all over the island. Nearby residents have been advised to stay indoors.

A large number of La Palma residents are trying to get off the island, but air traffic remains suspended due to ash emissions, so the only way off the island is by ferry. There are large queues forming at ferry terminals.

[Dreamtimer]

INVOLCAN describes the morning plume as creating gravity waves in the atmosphere:



From Copernicus EMS:

Our #RapidMappingTeam has released its 9th monitoring product for #LaPalma Flag of Spain using a new radar image

It shows:

589 buildings destroyed (+76 compared to Monit08)
The lava flow covers 258 ha (+20.5 ha in 19h)
21 km of roads destroyed

[Dreamtimer]

Waning volcanic activity from the 26th through the 27th:



And then,

The volcano in Cumbre Vieja, on the island of La Palma, has started to emit smoke and lava again just a few minutes ago, after the volcanic tremors almost disappeared early this morning, as confirmed by the Volcanological Institute of the Canary Islands (Involcan) on Twitter saying "the re-emission of lava in the main cone is also confirmed, fortunately without a large explosion.”

After the stoppage of activity this morning, experts considered the possibility that the eruption could move to the south of the island due to the increase in seismic activity registered by the IGN in the municipality of Fuencaliente.

Monitoring of seismic activity is continuing in this area as 16 earthquakes were measured this morning at between 2.6 and 3.2 on the Richter scale, although they haven’t reported any change in the deformation of the earth’s surface.

However, the Geological Mining Institute of Spain (IGME) warned that the volcano "did not stop", but entered "a phase of rest; which is normal". Their coordinator, who was in the emission area last night monitoring its activity, has indicated that it is "unlikely" that it has been plugged and ends in a large explosion.

From this morning:

The National Geographic Institute (IGN) has reported that they have registered two new earthquakes in the south of the island of La Palma this morning, specifically, in the municipality of Fuencaliente, the same area as yesterday.

Following a mini seismic swarm that was felt by the public in the same town during the period that the volcano ceased activity yesterday morning, monitoring has increased in the area as there are fears that the magma is looking for another way out of the ground.

The first of the new quakes happened at 9.35am this morning at a depth of 11kms and reached a magnitude of 2.9 on the Richter scale, then half an hour later at 10.05am another 2.7-degree earthquake took place, located 14 kilometres below the surface.

An eruption in another part of the island is not ruled out although the fact the main cone is still releasing magma should prevent this from happening, as it would be more likely if that one was blocked.

[Dreamtimer]

This is quite a shot:

[Chris]

UPDATE 9:49 AM EDT --

Bill McGuire is one of the scientists who investigated La Palma back in the late 1990's and issued the cautionary warning that a future earthquake could cause the ridge of Cumbre Viejo to collapse in a massive landlside, into the Atlantic Ocean. At the time, he theorized that there would be a massive, Atlantic-wide Tsunami that would reach the US east coast within 7 to 8 hours, wiping out the major cities in the eastern USA.

He has now chimed-in on the ongoing LaPalma eruption, and what he has to say, is VERY not good:


Bill McGuire
@ProfBillMcGuire
Worrying that a new deep quake swarm has begun beneath the #CumbreVieja ridge.

This could herald the rise of more magma in the vicinity of the fractures that opened up in the 1949 #eruption.



MORE:

According to the Seismographs, the volcano has increased intensity today; almost ALL of the readings are "pegged" off the scales!

[Dreamtimer]

Radar image of the volcano.

[Chris]

Volcano eruption getting worse. Two new vents opened up recently causing new lava flows, accompanied by serious earthquakes. No sign of further landslides, thank goodness, but there are visible gravity waves emanating from the volcano, indicating the immense power of the ongoing eruption. Still a dangerous situation that needs monitoring.

[Dreamtimer]

The Cumbre Vieja volcano was “much more aggressive”, almost two weeks after it erupted on the island of La Palma, said Miguel Ángel Morcuende, the technical director of the Canary Islands’ emergency volcano response department.

Overnight, scientists recorded eight new earthquakes up to magnitude 3.5.

The eruption was sending gas and ash up to 6,000 metres into the air, officials said.

The prompt evacuation of more than 6,000 people since the 19 September eruption helped prevent casualties.

A new area of solidified lava where the molten rock is flowing into the sea extends over more than 20ha (50 acres).

The volcano has so far emitted some 80m cubic metres of molten rock, scientists estimate – more than double the amount in the island’s last eruption in 1971.

The lava has so far destroyed or partially destroyed more than 1,000 buildings, including homes and farming infrastructure, and entombed around 709ha on the Spanish archipelago off north-west Africa.

from the Guardian

One of the cones of the volcano that has been emitting lava in recent weeks has given way and collapsed, resulting in several of the active ‘mouths’ of the La Palma volcano joining together to make one much bigger cone with two smaller vents, and a bigger lava flow being emitted, as the volcano continues with as much force as it started with 15 days ago.


Six tremors shake Fuencaliente:
According to the IGN, they have seen an increase in the seismic activity in the southern municipality of Fuencaliente in La Palma, coinciding with the resurgence of eruptive activity in the volcano after the collapse of part of one of its cones.

Last night they recorded a succession of earthquakes between 10:30pm and 12.20am, four of them with an intensity greater than 3, and only one, at 11:45pm, with a strength of 2.9 on the Richter scale.

The most intense earthquake occurred at 12.20am this morning measured at 3.7 on the Richter scale which was felt by the public, which was equalled by another tremor in Villa de Mazo also measured at 3.7.

from Canarian Weekly