A spectacular rockslide has been caught on camera in The Canary Islands, this time on the island of El Hierro, when rocks and debris fell from a high cliff in an area known as El Golfo, located in the municipality of Frontera. The exact site of the rockfall is known as the ‘Fuga de Tibataje’.

It is a very rugged, isolated and uninhabited area on the sweeping western north coast of this western-most island. Fortunately, at the time of the rockslide there were no people in the area and no one has been reported injured. Landslides here can be quite frequent, due to the volcanic and geological formations of the rock structures in the area with sheer cliffs descending from high altitude on this active volcanic island. Residents say they do not remember any similar landslides as spectacular as this one.

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In the images recorded by locals in the area large amounts of debris crumbles to the foot of the cliff without any reported damage to nearby homes or the nearest access road.

A similar episode was also caught on camera, last November on a neighbouring island. There an impressive avalanche of rocks also fell from a cliff onto a beach, known as Argaga, on the west coast of the island of La Gomera, in Valle Gran Rey and the rockslide was caught on camera by terrified tourists. More than 1 million visitors came to see and share the video.

In this case, agents were deployed to the scene and a tracking operation initiated to check if anyone could have been trapped behind the debris. Fortunately, no injuries appear to have resulted from the rockfall.

El Hierro is the archipelago’s youngest island and in 2012 was the scene of a major submarine volcanic eruption off the south coast following weeks of seismic swarms caused by thousands of earth tremors.
Spectacular, wild and tranquil, this island still has plenty of volcanic activity and two interpretation centres where you can visit and find out more about the evolution of the Canary Islands, as it happens

The Canary News
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