Luis Perez, a resident of El Paso, prepares a suitcase with his clothes and unnecessary things to leave his house in case of an emergency, on the Canary Island of La Palma, Spain, Sept 19th, 2021. LA PALMA, Spain, 19 Sept Reuters : Around 40 people with mobility problems and some farm animals on the La Palma island were evacuated to safer areas on Sunday after scientists warned about the rising risk of a volcanic eruption.
Scientists recorded a series of earthquakes. These earthquakes reached an magnitude of 3.8 in the Cumbre Vieja National Park in the south of the island, according to the Spanish National Geographical Institute (Ministère de la Naturación and Geography).
The vulnerable people and farm animals were evacuated from Las Manchas, Fuencaliente, La Bombilla, El Remo e Puerto Naos, the government of the Canary Islands said, but the island remains on Yellow Alert, the second lowest of a four-level alert system.
Solders were deployed to help with the evacuation, the defence ministry said.
Authorities have not ordered the evacuation of up to 35,000 people who live near the volcano.
The earthquakes are becoming more forceful and the magma is pushing steadily towards the surface. There is a greater chance of an eruption which means authorities decided to evacuate some people, said a spokesman for the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute.
Authorities in those areas advised people on Friday to prepare a life-saving backpack with vital supplies and a mobile phone in case an evacuation is ordered.