![]() La Palma is the island where the clearest warning signs of a coming collapse have been found. Is there a similar danger anywhere else in the world? With suitable monitoring, warning and evacuation, people can be moved out of the areas at risk.ĥ. Scientists say that although the risk of a collapse happening in the next few decades is small, when it does happen, it will cause great destruction, both on La Palma itself and wherever the mega-tsunami from La Palma strike land.Īlthough nothing can be done to stop a collapse, scientists point out there is a lot that can be done to prevent loss of life when a collapse does eventually happen. Is there anything we can do to stop the collapse from happening? However scientists believe that they could still be as much as 50 metres high, for example, when they reach the east coast of the United States.Ĥ. All these waves would get smaller as they cross the Atlantic. Most of the energy of the wave would head straight out across the Atlantic towards the United States, Bahamas and the Caribbean, but a smaller wave or waves would head in other directions too. As the flank slid into the sea, it would create a very large wave called a mega-tsunami. There would be very strong earthquakes across La Palma while the flank was sliding. The western flank of the Cumbre Vieja volcano would slide down westwards into the Atlantic ocean. But scientists simply do not know how many eruptions it will take. It may well take five, ten or more summit eruptions before the collapse occurs. The last summit eruption was in 1949, so it may be many decades before the next summit eruption takes place.įurthermore, the collapse will not necessarily happen during the next summit eruption. Eruptions on the summit occur on average every 200 years or so. ![]() Scientists have discovered that La Palma will collapse at the time of some future volcanic eruption on the summit of the Cumbre Vieja volcano. They will be able to alert people to possible danger several weeks in advance. Scientists also know that a collapse will not happen without any warning. What scientists are predicting is that the collapse is likely to happen any time within the next few thousand years. Tourists should not cancel their holidays to the Canary Islands, or to the east coast of the United States or the Caribbean. The collapse of the western flank of the Cumbre Vieja volcano, on the southern half of La Palma, is not going to happen tomorrow or next week. When will the volcano on La Palma collapse? ![]()
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