The (not so) Fortunate Islands

The waters surrounding the Canaries are a true paradise for divers, and certainly not only because of the underwater fauna and flora. It seems like the same volcanic surface we find on the islands continues under water: volcanic rock formations, caves, tunnels, lava reefs. This shows that at some point in history volcanic eruptions and lava floods
changed the appearance of the ocean bottom in this region, maybe even hiding traces of Atlantis under a tick layer of
lava. Lanzarote, for instance, experienced in the 18th century a 6 years long volcanic eruption, altering a significant
part of its surface. Furthermore little is known about the ‘original’ ocean floor: it’s not exceptional for large parts to slide under the mantle again and disappear in the burning depths of the earth. In this process, deep trenches are formed in the ocean. This could have happened in the Canary region as well.

But how dangerous is this area geologically? And are disasters likely to happen there again? Unfortunately the
answer seems to be yes. In an article that appeared in the Guardian Newspaper in August 2001 British and US scientists warn that an eruption of the Cumbre Vieja on La Palma could cause one of the worst disasters in the history of mankind. In that article we read:

“A lump of rock twice the volume of the Isle of Man would slide down theunstable western flank of the mountain at more than 200mph and travel up to 40 miles along the sea floor. This would set off the worst tsunami, or giant wave, ever recorded.” (The Guardian, August 29, 2001)