The Cumbre Vieja volcano in the Spanish island of La Palma in the Canary Islands began erupting in September 2021, and has been doing so for the past two months. Lava flow from the eruption has covered nearly a thousand hectares, destroyed more than 2,600 buildings, and displaced some 7,000 people from their homes.

With no signs of stopping, Casimiro Curbelo, the president of the municipal council of La Gomera, a neighboring island, has suggested that perhaps the lava flows could be diverted away from populated regions through more extreme measures, such as by getting a plane to bomb them.

Eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano in La Palma. Photo: Gabriel Trujillo | Dreamstime.com