The Cumbre Vieja volcano eruption continues to intensify. According to reports, rivers of lava engulf several buildings near the volcano, and the red-hot eruption merged with flashes of lightning in recent days.
The Cumbre Vieja volcano, located on the Spanish island of La Palma, started erupting on Sept. 19. Since then, it has already destroyed more than 800 buildings and has forced thousands of residents to evacuate.
Four more buildings destroyed following latest volcanic eruption
On Saturday, the magma destroyed at least four more buildings in Callejon de la Gata. And lightning flashes were also seen near the eruption.
Other than the 800 plus buildings, the lava from the volcano has also destroyed 150 hectares of farmland and banana plantations in La Palma. This destruction will impact their economy because crop accounts for 50 percent of the island's source of income.
Following the eruptions, La Palma decided to close down its airport. However, nearby islands were also affected by the ash cloud from the eruption.
Flights, salt flats affected by the volcanic eruption
On Friday, flights on the neighboring island of Tenerife were disrupted for several hours due to the ash cloud. The ash also covered salt flats on the island.
"When the ash fell we were about to collect the salt, but it completely covered everything creating a crust on top and we cannot separate the salt from the ash. It has completely penetrated the grain. It's impossible to separate," Andres Hernandez, a La Palma resident said via Al Jazeera.
Landowner Jose Roberto Sanchez said that the red hot lava has also engulfed the land that he inherited from his parents. However, it has not yet reached his house, and he hopes that the eruption would end before it could destroy more properties, according to Reuters.
Residents saw gravity waves following volcanic eruption
According to AccuWeather, the latest eruption forced the air above the volcano to move upwards. This was followed by circular ripples spreading out of the volcano, also known as gravity waves.
Gravity waves typically occur when air is displaced from a calm state. AccuWeather meteorologist Renee Duff explained that as the air is pushed upward, it wants to sink back down to maintain equilibrium immediately. However, it could take several up and down waves before gravity waves can exist.
The Cambre Vieja volcano erupted on Sept. 19. At the time, local government officials asked some residents to evacuate. They also guided the elderly and those with disabilities during the evacuation process.
At the time, there were predictions that the volcanic eruption would last for a couple of weeks or even months. After all, previous eruptions also lasted for quite some time.
But unlike those previous eruptions, no one anticipated that the Cambre Vieja would erupt because they didn't notice any activity on the volcano. However, authorities detected more than 22,000 tremors around the volcanic region.
Prior to last month's eruption, the last time that the Cambre Vieja volcano erupted was in 1949.
