It's a never-ending eruption.
The authorities of the Spanish island of La Palma, in the Canary archipelago, on Monday declared the confinement of around 3,000 people, for fear of potential toxic fumes linked to the arrival in the sea of a new flow of lava spewed out by the Cumbre Vieja volcano.
The Canary Islands Volcanic Emergency Plan (Pevolca) "orders the containment" of inhabitants of towns and coastal hamlets located near where lava cascaded into the sea in a large plume of white smoke, the officials said. emergency services of the archipelago.
This confinement is due "to the possible emanations of gases harmful to health," the statement added.
Más imágenes desde la montaña de La Laguna at 10.20 hora canaria / More footage from La Laguna mountain at 10.20 am Canarian time pic.twitter.com/hwz0nHTU2Q
- INVOLCAN (@involcan) November 22, 2021
This decision concerns "around 3,000 people," said Miguel Ángel Morcuende, technical director of Pevolca, during a press conference.
This is the third time that a lava flow has reached the sea since the start of the eruption of Cumbre Vieja on September 19.
If the lava only devastated part of the west of the island, the ash spat by the volcano again led to a suspension of operations at the airport in Santa Cruz de la Palma, the island's capital, on Monday. located on the east coast, said airport manager Aena.
Fotografía de la erupción a las 9.05 hora canaria desde el embalse Dos Pinos / Photograph of the eruption at 9.05 am Canarian time from the Dos Pinos dam pic.twitter.com/sPz3q8lCqr
- INVOLCAN (@involcan) November 22, 2021
The regional company Binter has announced the cancellation of all its flights to and from La Palma on Monday.
Sunday, the disruptions at the airport had forced many tourists to fall back on ferries to Tenerife, another island in the archipelago.
The mask against sulfur dioxide
In addition, for the first time since the start of the eruption, the island authorities have asked the inhabitants of Santa Cruz de la Palma to wear an FFP2 mask in order to protect themselves from sulfur dioxide fumes.
Experts do not see for the moment the end of the eruption which, according to the land register, destroyed almost 1,500 buildings including nearly 1,100 homes.
According to the latest data from the European geospatial measurement system Copernicus, lava has covered 1,065 hectares.