‘My whole life in a van’: islanders flee Spanish volcano

A wall of lava up to 12 metres (40 feet) high bore down on a Spanish island village on Wednesday, as residents scrambled to save what they could before the molten rock swallowed up their homes followi

A wall of lava up to 12 metres (40 feet) high bore down on a Spanish island village on Wednesday, as residents scrambled to save what they could before the molten rock swallowed up their homes following a volcanic eruption.

The lava still spewing from last Sunday’s eruption in the Canary Islands off northwest Africa advanced slowly down hillsides to the coast, where Todoque was the last village between the molten rock and the Atlantic Ocean.

Residents hoping to save some of their belongings queued up at two areas designated by authorities so they could be escorted into the village. The lava was advancing slowly in the distance, at around 120 metres (400 feet) an hour, with smoke coming from its leading edge as it destroyed everything in its path.