Cumbre Vieja Volcano Collapse Threatens East Coast Megatsunami
A devastating megatsunami carrying 65-foot waves could strike the East Coast of the United States within nine hours if an unstable volcano in Spain’s Canary Islands collapses into the Atlantic Ocean, The Sun reported.
Volcanologist Professor Bill McGuire issued the warning after monitoring the active Cumbre Vieja volcano on the island of La Palma. Rather than destruction coming from ash clouds or molten lava, the primary danger stems from a massive western flank of the volcano breaking off and plunging into the sea, triggering a transatlantic wall of water.
“The volcano threatens to create a ‘megatsunami’ that could come barrelling towards the east coast,” McGuire wrote in an article for BBC Science Focus. “Inhabitants may have just hours to evacuate before a wall of water comes slamming into the coastline.”
Computer simulations indicate that coastal communities along the East Coast would face inundation within nine hours of a collapse. The catastrophic event would also wipe out parts of Europe, including La Palma and neighboring islands, under water waves measuring hundreds of meters in height.
Boulders in the Bahamas Suggest Ancient Transoceanic Waves
Scientists have pointed to physical evidence from past disasters to support the plausibility of a transatlantic wave. Boulders found on shorelines in the Bahamas are believed by researchers to have been carried across the ocean by ancient tsunamis originating in the Canary Islands.
This historical record suggests that a Cumbre Vieja tsunami retains the potential for immense destruction even after crossing the entire Atlantic basin. However, scientists remain divided on the exact likelihood of such a wave maintaining its height and destructive force over that distance.
The geological instability is well-documented. The western flank of the volcano partially detached during an eruption in 1949 and has continued to inch toward the sea at a rate of one to two centimeters per year, according to research conducted by McGuire’s team in the 1990s.
Researchers Debate Timeline for the La Palma Disaster
While researchers agree on the physical mechanics of flank collapses—which occur naturally as part of volcanic life cycles, such as the last recorded event 5,000 years ago on Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean—the timeline for the La Palma disaster remains completely unknown.
“There’s no way to predict when it might happen,” McGuire said. “Death will come swiftly and unlooked for – a wall of water surging out of nowhere.”
Despite the severity of the potential outcome, the exact probability is heavily debated within the scientific community. McGuire acknowledged the ongoing arguments over whether a collapse would generate a trans-oceanic megatsunami or if the wave energy would dissipate before reaching North America. He maintains that while the event is certain to happen eventually, it could occur centuries or millennia into the future.