Vast rivers of lava grow on Spanish island as earthquakes gain intensity
Santa Cruz de La Palma, Spain, Oct 27 (EFE).- Fiery lava pouring out of a volcano on the Spanish island of La Palma continues to feed the ever-growing rivers of molten rock as earthquakes in the region grew stronger on Wednesday.
The latest report from Spain’s Department of Homeland Security warned that Wednesday morning’s lava output was increasing the height of the streams of volcanic rock and filling in the islands of land that had emerged between different lava flows.
Experts added that the area surrounding the observation post closest to the volcano’s cone had grown Tuesday by up to 10 centimeters (3.9 inches).
The Cumbre Vieja’s volcanic cone is in a state of constant change since it first erupted on September 19 due to the density of the magma.
On Tuesday, the inner cone of the volcano collapsed in on itself after suffering a new rupture, causing an intense output of lava, the DSN said.
As well as a spike in the volume of lava, stronger earthquakes have been shaking the region.
Some 70 earthquakes were recorded overnight and the largest one was of a magnitude of 4.8 on the Richter scale in Villa de Mazo, according to the National Geographic Institute (IGN).
So far some 879.69 hectares of land, equivalent to 1,232 soccer pitches, have been affected by the volcanic eruption. EFE
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