Latest news on the La Palma volcano
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Oct 2 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Cabildo de La Palma, through the Insular Water Council, has been working during these days in the search for solutions to recover irrigation in areas whose networks were affected in recent days: the Cuatro Caminos area, El Manchón and a stretch of Dos Pinos, as well as those others that could be damaged by the effects of the volcano, in the Hoyas-Remo area, as has finally happened today.
The main alternative proposed by the Minister of Water, Carlos Cabrera, and whose work has already been awarded, is based, on the one hand, on raising the water from the Las Hoyas area to the Cuatro Caminos Pool. “We have to get water to that pool as soon as possible to ensure irrigation for farmers on their properties,” explains Cabrera.
On the other hand, he indicated that the source of water supply for this operation to support Hoyas-Remo must be, as they have transmitted to the Government of the Canary Islands at the beginning of this week, the desalination of water with portable plants that, according to said the counselor, “it would require having the analyzes that certify that the water to be extracted complies with the required parameters.” In addition, Cabrera emphasizes, “these works are very advanced”.
Along with this proposal, next Tuesday the Insular Water Council will also declare an emergency and contract the “supply of flows through the existing fire network” that will allow to have flows at height to supply the Southwest strip of the island. It will be carried out taking advantage of the elevation of Aduares and the recently completed Deposit of the Caves.
This action is intended to meet the demand of the Cuatro Caminos area, the part that supplies LP-II to the Manchón and the irrigation allowed by the Dos Pinos-Barranco Los Hombres Canal. It will also be able to serve the upper area of Las Manchas, both household supply and irrigation complement, being able, finally, to reach Fuencaliente. We consider this work of special significance. Progress is also being made in the possible contracting of a means of transporting water from the port area.
The water councilor said he was convinced that it was time to close the hydraulic ring as a structural and backbone of the system. “The closure is essential to better respond to situations or serious incidents that could interrupt the island’s water transport system,” he said.
FARMERS WILL BE ABLE TO CONTINUE CUTTING THE FRUIT
Despite the pipe breaking, the fruit cutting operation continues in El Remo, Charco Verde, Puerto Naos and Tazacorte. The access of the cutting trucks to the area will be through the Fuencaliente highway, while the Las Martelas straight will be the meeting point to cut north of the La Laguna mountain.
The cutting operation is organized in four shifts (08.00, 11.00, 14.00 and 17.00), although the cutters must be half an hour before at the point of departure. A security device will accompany them at all times.
Another noteworthy point is that the confinement has been lifted in the neighborhoods of Tazacorte, Los Llanos de Aridane and El Paso and that the air quality on the island is good.
In Los Llanos de Aridane and El Paso the confinement was decreed, on Friday night, due to the meteorological situation. The punctual entry of Saharan air to the island originated a kind of “plug” that prevented the dispersion of the gases emitted by the greenhouses and the fertilizers burned by the lava. Added to this was an intake of air from the East, which displaced gases near the Los Llanos and El Paso neighborhoods, and the weakness of the trade winds. Hence, preventive confinement was chosen, which has already been lifted. From now on, information will be provided, if necessary, through vehicles with a public address system.
As Pevolca pointed out, the volcanic process is consistent with other eruptions recorded in the Canary Islands. To date, 1,005 buildings have been affected by magma (880 with total damage and 105 with partial damage), according to the latest data from the Corpernicus satellite. The lava has also disabled 28.3 kilometers of road. At this moment, 201 people are evacuated in the Fuencaliente hotel.
