Scientist Warns Unstable Spanish Volcano Could Trigger ‘Cataclysmic’ US East Coast Megatsunami

A volatile volcano in Spain’s Canary Islands could eventually send part of the island crashing into the Atlantic, triggering a massive “megatsunami” capable of reaching the US East Coast within hours, according to a warning from a leading scientist.

Still, researchers emphasize that there is no way to predict whether such an event will occur — or when it might happen.

Volcanologist Professor Bill McGuire has studied Cumbre Vieja, a volcano believed to have the potential to generate a transatlantic tsunami. He outlined the risk in an article for BBC Science Focus.

The concern involves a huge section of unstable rock, known as a flank, that is gradually shifting toward the sea. If it were to collapse, the falling mass could displace an enormous volume of water, McGuire explained.

“Based on extensive studies, I expect this part of the flank will eventually crash into the North Atlantic, launching a megatsunami in the process,” he wrote.

“There has been huge debate and discussion, sometimes quite heated, about the level of expected destruction, and — in particular — whether devastating waves will reach the coast of North America.”

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Evidence supporting the possibility of waves crossing the Atlantic comes from unusual boulders found along the shores of the Bahamas.

Geologists believe those rocks were transported by ancient tsunamis generated by Canary Island landslides, offering physical evidence that a volcanic flank collapse could have effects thousands of miles away.

In McGuire’s worst-case computer models, the resulting waves could rise as high as 65 feet and reach the US Eastern Seaboard in roughly nine hours after the collapse.

However, experts stress that no Atlantic-wide disaster is considered an immediate threat.

Although a tsunami would move across the ocean at speeds comparable to a jetliner once formed, the volcanic collapse itself may not happen for hundreds or even thousands of years.

“I have no doubt this will be a cataclysmic event, but have no idea when it will happen — it could easily be centuries or even millennia down the line,” McGuire said.