Eight ravines on the island of Tenerife are deemed to be at risk due to episodes of heavy rainfall and are included in the flood risk management plan of the Cabildo de Tenerife, monitored via a limnometer.
This was stated on Wednesday by the president of the island council, Rosa Dávila, who clarified that these include the San Felipe ravines in Puerto de la Cruz and Los Realejos; del Infierno and Torviscas in Adeje; of Santos in La Laguna and Santa Cruz de Tenerife; Bufadero and El Hierro, located in the capital of Tenerife; and San Juan in Guía de Isora.
During a press briefing this Wednesday regarding the agreements of the island government council, Dávila mentioned that these ravines will be categorised as “priority areas” during severe rain events, and emphasised that all of them are equipped with a limit meter that provides real-time assessments of water levels at critical junctures.
The president highlighted that in case of adverse weather conditions, Tenerife’s prevention approach also relies on a decision support and early warning system, described as “unique in the Canary Islands”, which utilises advanced technology to monitor meteorological phenomena in real-time.
Additionally, Rosa Dávila furthered that the Cabildo of Tenerife, the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), and the Insular Water Council have established a collaborative agreement aimed at enhancing alerts and forecasts in cases of ravine overflow.
As a result of this partnership, two radars have been deployed to ensure increased accuracy when determining areas with a higher likelihood of water discharge.
Reports from the island council indicate that Aemet has now installed the second radar at Cruz de Gala in Buenavista, which, alongside the one in Taborno, will provide comprehensive coverage over the entire island, thereby enhancing predictive capabilities with improved accuracy and foresight.
“Any forecast can be underestimated, but (from the Cabildo) we have developed mechanisms over the years that allow us to deliver a much more nuanced forecast for timely warnings to the populace,” Dávila noted.
