Ten towns were buried under the lava and a large part of the population had to emigrate
The last major volcanic eruption in the Canary Islands (and in Spain) occurred in 2021 on La Palma. And yet, despite its spectacular nature and seriousness, it was an irrelevant event when compared to the proportions of the great Lanzarote eruption of 1730. It lasted no less than six years, devastated a third of the island’s surface and wiped out the best fertile soil on the island. Since then nothing like it has been seen. It was a true ‘mega-eruption’.
The parish priest of the nearby town of Yaiza was the improvised chronicler of what happened, since he left in writing everything that happened, day by day, at a time when there were no media.
“On September 1, between nine and ten at night, the land suddenly opened up near Timanfaya, two leagues from Yaiza. On the first night, a huge mountain rose from the womb of the earth and flames escaped from the apex that continued to burn for nineteen days & rdquor ;, it is his first entry.
But it was only the beginning. Andrés Lorenzo Curbelo would relate how new volcanoes were appearing in a landscape previously dominated by cultivated fields. In January 1731 everything was still in full swing:
“On the 10th he saw an immense mountain rise that the same day sank into its own crater, with a frightening noise and covered the island with ashes and stones (…) On February 3 a new cone rose, burned the village of Rodeo, and after having razed the entire region of this village, it reached the edges of the sea (…) On March 7, other cones rose and the lava that came out headed north towards the sea and reached Tingafa, which was completely devastated. New cones, finished by craters, rose on March 20 (…) On April 13 two mountains sank with a frightening noise…”.
scenes from herds of cattle killed by gas clouds from volcanoes, large amounts of dead fish in the sea due to the arrival of lava… Everything shows that it was an episode of unknown violence, with new mountains/volcanoes sprouting from the surface in a single day and, sometimes, suddenly collapsing under their weight.
On April 16, 1736, six years later, everything seemed to calm down at last. But a third of the island had become uninhabitable and its landscape, transformed into another totally unrecognizable.
Ten towns buried under lava
The final balance was ten entire towns buried under lava: Tingafa, Montaña Blanca, Maretas, Santa Catalina, Jaretas, San Juan, Peña de Palmas, Testeina and Rodeos. His remains are still found under those dark and pointed rocks that preside over the terrain from the Timanfaya National Park and its surroundings.
There was only one death to mourn, that of a young child. However, many were displaced. Lanzarote was then inhabited by almost 5,000 residents, distributed in 1,077 houses, of which 2,000 had to emigrate to other islands of the archipelago and even to South America.
The rest of the population, the one that stayed, subsisted on the very reduced agricultural production of an island that, by itself, has never been excessively fertile.
The Caldera del Cuervo was the first volcano to form in this massive and continuous eruption process. Today it can be visited on a pleasant excursion along peaceful paths that, however, reveal the magnitude of the disaster that occurred in the 18th century. It so happens that, not many meters away, the last of the volcanoes that appeared at that time can be seen. And, on the horizon, a set of cones emerged in between, which changed the landscape forever.
Declared a National Park in 1974
Today, this entire perimeter is the Timanfaya National Park, declared as such in 1974 by the Spanish Government. Inside there are no less than 25 volcanoes, making it a true paradise for lovers of geology. The landscape, with clear Martian resonances, has served for the filming of more than one science fiction film. It occupies a total of 5,100 hectares.
But this national park is surrounded, in turn, by the Natural Park of the Volcanoes, which occupies more than 10,100 hectares and which, together with the National Park, forms an extensive protected area where you can admire the force of nature.
That of 1730-1736 was not, however, the last eruption of Lanzarote, because Almost a hundred years later, in 1824, the eruptions began again in Timanfaya. This new episode gave rise to the so-called Volcán de Tinguatón, Tao and del Fuego.
Even today it presents volcanic activity, as there are hot spots on the surface that reach 100º-120º C and 600º C at a depth of 13 meters.
It is one of the most interesting points in the Canary Islands from a natural point of view, since shows how nature can change suddenly. And it also shows how slow the colonization of the spaces occupied by lava is, since large extensions of malpaís (soil occupied by lava) still remain today, three centuries later, totally impassable and with the same appearance as if those masses had emerged yesterday. itself inside the Earth.
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