The Cabildo de Tenerife is finalising preparations for a drill to be conducted in the municipality of Garachico from 22 to 26 September. This exercise aims to evaluate its volcanic risk strategy in the event of an eruption at Teide, involving over 1,000 participants.
The choice of Garachico is intentional, as the northwest of the island — which includes this municipality alongside El Tanque, Santiago del Teide, and Guía de Isora — is identified as the area with the highest volcanic risk, according to projections by Involcan.
Dávila has reiterated that there is no “imminent” risk of eruption from Teide, but acknowledges the necessity for the island to be “prepared for any situation,” insisting the aim is not to alarm, but rather to establish a common strategy for communicating with residents about ongoing measures.
In this respect, he highlighted the collaboration with scientific bodies to “have all the management and analysis tools” ready. “The foremost priority in any eruptive event is the protection of human life,” he stated.
He also advocated for increased financial resources from the council to support preventative efforts and assist municipalities in developing their emergency plans — a meeting is scheduled for 15 September.
He noted the establishment of logistical points in partnership with the Red Cross and the College of Pharmacists, along with training programmes involving Involcan, IGN, Aemet, and universities. Command posts have been designed to facilitate collaboration between scientists and the military.
Possible Eruption at Teide
“We cannot turn a blind eye; this is the responsible approach to prevent and be prepared,” he indicated, emphasising that this drill will be groundbreaking in Spain and will match the drills conducted in Hawaii or Sicily.
While numerous activities will take place prior to the main event, the pinnacle of the exercise, which is part of the UE-Modex, the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism, will occur on 26 September. Residents across the island will receive a message at 09:00 through the ES-Alert platform announcing the eruption as the island enters ‘red alert’.
At that point, the evacuation of residents from the old port of Garachico will commence, signalling the start of the drill.
Padrón clarified that the intent is not to “improvise” but to conduct a “pedagogical exercise” with a “standardised operational pattern” to raise awareness among the population, encouraging them to “empower” themselves and become more “resilient” in the face of such eventualities.
Thus, he appealed for a “global strategy” in which all areas of the Cabildo participate, coordinating with municipalities to identify vulnerable individuals, pets, housing for displaced residents, and facilitating the evacuation of tourists.
Risk in Civil Protection, “Increasingly Complex”
Padrón acknowledged that “the risk is becoming increasingly complex” due to climate change, which necessitates a focus on anticipation and prevention.
D’Auria reflected on the “incredible change” in Tenerife over the last 25 years regarding the “quality” of civil protection systems and volcanic monitoring, asserting that a “real-time situational overview” will be established.
In this context, he mentioned the acquisition of three calorimeters to help “anticipate a future eruption,” stating its importance in tracking magma movements as eruption times can be very short, sometimes within a week.
He asserted that “the whole island must be prepared,” as volcanic monitoring is “not easy,” as demonstrated in La Palma. He acknowledged that Tenerife has exhibited “anomalies” since 2016, which in 80% of cases result in the island “returning to slumber.”
He pointed out that ‘seismic swarms’ are related to the island’s hydrothermal system, observing that “there’s no evidence” of deep magma movement, and expressed hope that the situation will not change in the near future.
According to Involcan’s statistical projections, the probability of an eruption in Tenerife stands at nearly 40% over the next 50 years and over 63% in 100 years.
D’Auria also remarked that volcanic risk in the Canary Islands “is increasing” due to infrastructure development and population growth, which makes residents more exposed. Despite this, he stressed the importance of working closely with the population, who have “little perception” of the risk.
He cited that participation in prevention workshops in La Palma months before the eruption was “rather low.”
