© 2025 EmCan Media - Hosted By canaryfone The National Geographic Institute (IGN) have reported an earthquake of 3.3 magnitude on the Richter scale detected today (Sunday) The tremor occurred at 3:04pm with its epicentre located to the east of the municipality at coordinates 28.4166 latitude and -16.5272 longitude Although the seismic event registered a notable magnitude no reports of personal injuries or material damage have been received as of yet Preliminary data suggests that the earthquake's intensity was weak but was felt across 14 municipalities on the island particularly in neighbourhoods such as El Durazno The quake's impact extended to neighbouring areas Other affected municipalities included La Victoria de Acentejo This earthquake is the latest in a series of seismic activities recorded in the Canary Islands which remains under close observation by experts seeking to better understand the geological dynamics of the archipelago While such events are not uncommon in the area they emphasize the importance of continuous monitoring and preparedness for potential seismic risks WILDFIRES are spreading "out of control" on the island of Tenerife The raging inferno has ripped through 4,450 acres of land in just 24 hours as hundreds of firefighters battle to contain it At least five villages have been evacuated after the fire erupted at a nature reserve on the north-east coast on Tuesday evening Officials have branded the blazes the "worst wildfires in 40 years" - forcing 7,600 people to be evacuated or forced to stay indoors. On Wednesday night, the flames tore through a forest with steep ravines in the island's north east. Tourists and residents have been warned the blaze is "out of control" as roads and holiday homes close. Spanish authorities said their main goal is to contain the fire and prevent it from reaching more populated areas. The 19-mile blaze is located in the mountainous area of Arafo - and hundreds of people in the surrounding villages of Arafo, Candelaria and La Orotava have been forced to flee. Officials said the areas affected are "mainly in the mountainous areas of Arafo, Candelaria, La Victoria de Acentejo, Santa Úrsula, La Orotava and El Rosario". The island's main town - Santa Cruz - is just 20km away from the flames. He said: "This is probably the most complicated blaze we have had on the Canary Islands As the forest fire rages, part of the sea has been turned black as burning ash rains down on it Footage from the holiday resort of Las Caletillas on the north-east coast shows the water covered by a layer of ash A local who filmed the images said: “Here you can appreciate the hell we’re experiencing “The water is literally black from ash in Caletillas." Another picture taken from the coastline at Candelaria showed a thick line of ash from the devastating forest fire snaking through the ocean a wildfire advisor to the Tenerife Council said the Canary Islands had never seen a blaze of the sort currently affecting Tenerife She said: “We’re seeing a type of fire we’ve never seen before in the Canary Islands “The fire has been generating convection in the 34 hours it has been burning “The column of flames has been three and six kilometres high “This generates its own meteorological conditions and affects nearby places.” awoke yesterday morning with a delicate layer of snow other parts of the island experienced a stark contrast as a calima — a hot dusty wind from the Sahara Desert — swept across the area highlighting the extreme variability of the weather conditions in the Canary Islands The weather data for the day highlights the unusual conditions with record breaking extremes Puerto de la Cruz recorded the highest temperature in the Canary Islands while the lowest temperature of 5.3°C was observed at Izaña a meteorological station near Teide's summit Gusts of wind peaked at 99 km/h in Agulo (La Gomera) emphasizing the ongoing meteorological instability Canary Islands weather stations dominated Spain’s temperature rankings for the day with five locations exceeding 30°C as follows: the early morning hours saw strikingly low temperatures in these locations: The Canary Islands government has maintained a pre-alert for storms as heavy winds and rains continue to pose challenges Wind speeds exceeded 90 km/h in several locations was recorded in areas such as San Bartolomé de Tirajana (4.4 litres per square meter) and Las Cañadas (4.2 litres per square metre) and the presence of the calima illustrates the extraordinary climatic diversity of the Canary Islands Visitors and residents are reminded to remain alert to weather updates particularly as the pre-alert for storms and winds continues The fierce winds brought by Storm Dorothea have caused widespread disruptions across Tenerife with power outages affecting more than 9,500 households The Tenerife Cabildo confirmed the figures this morning (Monday) attributing the blackouts to the maximum wind alert issued for the island The power cuts have predominantly impacted four municipalities: with gusts exceeding 100 km/h in some areas brought down power lines leaving thousands without electricity The severe weather also sparked two brush fires in La Orotava and La Victoria Road conditions across the island remain hazardous and dislodged road signs have obstructed key routes with some rendered impassable due to landslides The most intense winds have been recorded in the following regions: The relentless wind has complicated recovery efforts with additional damage anticipated as the storm persists The island’s emergency operations centre has been overwhelmed with calls logging 1,634 incidents since the onset of the storm Tenerife’s fire department has responded to 84 emergencies including debris removal and rescue operations advising residents to stay indoors and avoid travel unless absolutely necessary Those in affected areas are encouraged to report hazards and outages to emergency services and to stay updated through official channels as the storm progresses Despite the fact that the epidemiological situation has improved and eleven municipalities in the Canary Islands still have very high incidence rates over seven and fourteen days in both the general population and those over 65 years of age and have a high risk of contagion in those areas the highest risk indicator for contagion is in the Gran Canaria town of Mogán with an incidence rate over 7 days of 351 and 72 new infections in the last week according to the new epidemiological report issued yesterday by the regional government In second place is Arona in the south of Tenerife with an IA7 of 323 cases per 100,000 inhabitants The third municipality with the highest incidence is La Victoria de Acentejo These three municipalities have all their parameters related to the transmission of the virus at very high risk; as do eight others from the archipelago with an IA7 of 134 cases per 100,000 inhabitants the spread of the virus is also a very high risk in Adeje (with an IA7 of 232) Guía de Isora (178) and San Miguel de Abona (138) along with Arona and La Victoria de Acentejo Santa Cruz and La Laguna now have lower incidence rates than all of these as their data is decreasing only the town of Pájara in Fuerteventura has all its indicators at high risk of transmission with an accumulated infection rate over seven days of 262 cases per 100,000 inhabitants THE SITUATION IS IMPROVING… SLOWLY:However the situation is gradually improving and last Friday there were 20 towns that had their indicators at extreme risk; among them Telde Despite the continued fall in the transmission of the virus since August 3rd this decrease has not yet been appreciated in the number of critically ill patients and deaths caused by the fifth wave This Tuesday Health reported the death of three infected people: a 49-year-old woman in Gran Canaria and a 91-year-old woman and an 87-year-old man who contracted the virus in a family outbreak the ICUs of the Canarian hospitals have once again reached their highest occupancy during the pandemic with 107 Covid patients The greatest healthcare pressure is borne by the Tenerife hospitals The island hospital of Fuerteventura has two critical Covid patients while in the hospital of La Gomera there is an infected in the ICU and the one in Lanzarote is treating a person for serious Covid The Canary Islands Government has declared a rain alert for Tenerife in the municipalities affected by the island's recent forest fire This decision comes in anticipation of a front that will bring rain in the form of light to locally moderate showers which will get more persistent during the early hours of tomorrow This decision is made in preparation for unusual incidents that rain might cause in the areas of the fire due to ash Residents of these municipalities are urged to exercise caution when the ground is wet The affected municipalities include El Rosario the Canary Islands Government has declared a pre-alert situation for rain based on available meteorological information and the application of the Specific Emergency Plan for the Canary Islands for Adverse Weather Phenomena (PEFMA) rainfall accumulation is likely to reach or exceed 60mm in 12 hours in parts of the eastern slope of La Palma and 40mm in 12 hours in the northern and northeastern highlands of Gran Canaria 3 Do not park your vehicle in the dry riverbeds a camping gas stove in case of power outage 5 Close and secure windows and doors to prevent water from entering in the event of flooding 6 Avoid going on hikes or camping until normal conditions are restored drive with caution and avoid crossing areas that may become flooded 2 If the storm is accompanied by lightning close windows and doors to prevent air currents that attract lightning 3 Unplug electrical appliances to prevent damage from power surges or electrical shocks turn off the main electricity feed in your home 5 If you get caught in a storm while driving reduce your speed and take extra precautions as the road may be affected by landslides 6 Avoid stopping in areas with a large amount of water flow and do not cross flooded sections to avoid being swept away by the water remember not to take shelter under solitary trees 8 Avoid making phone calls to prevent line congestion The Tenerife Cabildo has announced this morning (Tuesday) that the access roads to Teide National Park from La Esperanza (TF-24) and La Orotava (TF-21) which had remained closed since the mid-August forest fire Limitations have been imposed on the sections affected by the fire to ensure people's safety the maximum speed limit is set at 50 kilometres per hour motorcycles and bicycles) and those exceeding twelve metres in length are not allowed Dávila explained that despite cleaning and signalling efforts there remains a risk because the guardrails and crash barriers have not yet been re-installed following the fire and it is expected that all restrictions will be lifted by the end of December SECTIONS ON ACCESS ROADS TO TEIDE AFFECTED: - The measures on TF-24 (La Esperanza) apply from Cruce de Machado (La Esperanza sanatorium) to Izaña (between kilometres 9 and 37.5) the measures apply from the access to La Caldera to El Portillo Bajo (between kilometres 16 and 33) the ban on travelling in the fire-affected zones in the municipalities of Fasnia gas cookers) and firework displays are prohibited in the area within the Corona Forestal Natural Park of the municipalities affected by the fire In other areas of the municipalities affected by the fire The following recreational areas and camping zones remain closed: Chanajiga (Los Realejos) With the support of canine handlers specialized in drug detection the Guardia Civil has being carrying out a large number of inspections in bars and restaurants in various municipalities in the north of Tenerife all suspected of possessing and selling narcotic substances a resident of the municipality of La Victoria The man was surprised by officers when the searches were being carried out as they caught him red handed selling cocaine to a customer in his bar agents seized various wraps of cocaine and more than 700 euros in cash divided into different bills they also seized various other doses of drugs from other customers of bars and cafeterias for which they filed the corresponding police reports and sanctions for the various offenses of possession/use of narcotic substances as well as to the owners of different establishments for offenses established in Law 7/2011 So far the searches have been carried out by Guardia Civil Units of Santa Cruz but the campaign is spreading to other areas of the island