There are two scenarios that would initiate such an event; one is quite obvious the other is not so.
Cumbre Vieja's last eruption created the fissure and moved the initial
land mass, another eruption could well see this section of the island
plummet into the Atlantic waters.
The other lesser-known
possibility is the result of water. If a period of prolonged rain
occurred, due to an exceptionally wet season, the water would act as a
lubricant barrier between the detached face of the island and the
underlying solid foundation, the piece which is currently holding the
dislodged section of the island in place. This film of water would
allow the dislodged piece to slide over its foundation and onward to
the waters of the Atlantic.
Whichever mechanism triggers its
release this massive chunk of rock and debris plunges into the
Atlantic, creating a 500 foot tidal wave which would race across the
Atlantic at speeds equivalent to a jet airliner.
After 4000 miles of travel the wave forms a lower but wider configuration.
Two to three hours after the initial collapse a wall of water 300 feet
high would slam into the West Coast of Africa. Towns and villages along
with their inhabitants, along the coast, are literally wiped off the
map.
An hour or so later a 30 foot high wave of destruction
would bear down on the south England Coast leaving coastal towns
devastated and thousands homeless.
Five hours after the
destructive events have occurred in southern England, the advancing
wall of water approaches the Caribbean Islands. On account of the low
topography of these Islands many are wiped clean of structures and
inhabitants as a wall of water simply sweeps over them.
Finally, the East Coast of the United States is reached, the populace
looking out to sea notice the water quickly recede, then on the
horizon, a white foaming mass approaches, already it is too late for
those witnessing this phenomena.
The wave slams into the coast
and in a matter of minutes cities such as New York, Miami, Washington
DC and Boston cease to exist. The death toll reaches tens of millions.
The wave sweeps up estuaries and rivers 20 miles in land, destroying everything in its path.
The water recedes over many days carrying debris and bodies out to sea.
This is not the end of the threat however, bodies, human and animal,
decompose resulting in outbreaks of disease such as cholera.
For months after the initial landslide, far away in La Palma, the damage to property, person and the ecology is assessed.
Vast areas of the United States are now uninhabitable and will remain so for many years to come.
The financial strain put on the affected nations impacts on the world economy.
These events could well happen tomorrow, or perhaps not for the next 50 years, but eventually they will happen.
The governments of the at risk countries know it can happen, they know
the inevitability and the risks, but as in the case of the United
States how do you evacuate 40 million people in just nine hours without
mass panic?
Strange as it may seem, but as the events of
December 26, 2004 prove, our very existence from day-to-day can be
shaped by events occurring thousands of miles away in places we may
never have heard of.
Cumbre Vieja's last eruption created the fissure and moved the initial
land mass, another eruption could well see this section of the island
plummet into the Atlantic waters.
The other lesser-known
possibility is the result of water. If a period of prolonged rain
occurred, due to an exceptionally wet season, the water would act as a
lubricant barrier between the detached face of the island and the
underlying solid foundation, the piece which is currently holding the
dislodged section of the island in place. This film of water would
allow the dislodged piece to slide over its foundation and onward to
the waters of the Atlantic.
Whichever mechanism triggers its
release this massive chunk of rock and debris plunges into the
Atlantic, creating a 500 foot tidal wave which would race across the
Atlantic at speeds equivalent to a jet airliner.
After 4000 miles of travel the wave forms a lower but wider configuration.
Two to three hours after the initial collapse a wall of water 300 feet
high would slam into the West Coast of Africa. Towns and villages along
with their inhabitants, along the coast, are literally wiped off the
map.
An hour or so later a 30 foot high wave of destruction
would bear down on the south England Coast leaving coastal towns
devastated and thousands homeless.
Five hours after the
destructive events have occurred in southern England, the advancing
wall of water approaches the Caribbean Islands. On account of the low
topography of these Islands many are wiped clean of structures and
inhabitants as a wall of water simply sweeps over them.
Finally, the East Coast of the United States is reached, the populace
looking out to sea notice the water quickly recede, then on the
horizon, a white foaming mass approaches, already it is too late for
those witnessing this phenomena.
The wave slams into the coast
and in a matter of minutes cities such as New York, Miami, Washington
DC and Boston cease to exist. The death toll reaches tens of millions.
The wave sweeps up estuaries and rivers 20 miles in land, destroying everything in its path.
The water recedes over many days carrying debris and bodies out to sea.
This is not the end of the threat however, bodies, human and animal,
decompose resulting in outbreaks of disease such as cholera.
For months after the initial landslide, far away in La Palma, the damage to property, person and the ecology is assessed.
Vast areas of the United States are now uninhabitable and will remain so for many years to come.
The financial strain put on the affected nations impacts on the world economy.
These events could well happen tomorrow, or perhaps not for the next 50 years, but eventually they will happen.
The governments of the at risk countries know it can happen, they know
the inevitability and the risks, but as in the case of the United
States how do you evacuate 40 million people in just nine hours without
mass panic?
Strange as it may seem, but as the events of
December 26, 2004 prove, our very existence from day-to-day can be
shaped by events occurring thousands of miles away in places we may
never have heard of.
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