Thousands flee as volcano erupts on Spain's La Palma island, homes destroyed

The volcano erupted on Sunday, shooting lava hundreds of metres into the air, engulfing houses and forests and sending molten rock towards the Atlantic Ocean over a sparsely populated area of La Palma.

The Canary Islands' first volcanic eruption in 50 years has forced the evacuation of about 5,000 people, including about 500 tourists, officials said on Monday, adding they were hopeful they would not need to evacuate more people.

The volcano erupted on Sunday, shooting lava hundreds of metres into the air, engulfing houses and forests and sending molten rock towards the Atlantic Ocean over a sparsely populated area of La Palma, the most northwestern island in the Canaries archipelago.