In the southern part of the Canary island El Hierro.
The Canary island El Hierro has recorded more than 8000 earthquakes since mid July. Reuters

A volcano erupted over a mile below the ocean's surface adjacent to the Spanish Canary Island of El Hierro on Monday, according to several reports.

El Hierro, the southwestern most island in the Canary Island archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, had been experiencing tremors for the past three months. On Monday, the island, originally formed from volcanic activity, encountered another eruption deep in the ocean at 10.43 a.m. local time (05:43 EDT).

The mayor of El Hierro, David Cabrera, said in a radio interview that underwater activity was taking place and had been going on for several hours, the Web site IrishWeatherOnline.com reported.

The island, El Hierro, was issued a volcanic eruption alert on Sunday after approximately 10,000 tremors were felt over the past three months, The Associated Press reported.

The alert also came after a 4.3 earthquake on Saturday, The AP reported.

Scientists were not sure whether the emissions were lava or gas, so they will continue with an analysis, a local official, María del Carmen Morales, told the Spanish daily La Opinión.

The eruption took place about three miles from El Hierro and about 1,500 feet deep, but the effects will not be felt, volcanologist Alicia Garcia of the Higher Council of Scientific Research said, Agence France-Presse reported. However, the Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that the eruption ocurred 2,000 meters below the ocean surface.

The earthquake monitoring stations on the island recorded the start of an eruption overnight, Garcia said, the AFP reported. There is no visible manifestation at the moment.

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