Tenerife is preparing to stage two major emergency exercises later this year, including a large-scale volcanic crisis drill in the south-west of the island involving evacuation and public safety procedures.

The volcanic emergency exercise will take place on 22nd October in Guía de Isora and Vilaflor. A second drill will be held in La Laguna in November, focusing on protecting the historic city's cultural heritage during an emergency.

The exercises are being organised by the Tenerife Cabildo alongside the Canary Islands Government's emergency services and representatives of the Spanish Government. The Guardia Civil and the National Police will also take part.

The October exercise will be the larger of the two and is designed to test how emergency and security services would respond to a volcanic crisis. Teams will practise evacuation procedures, protecting residents and coordinating the response between different authorities.

The exercise follows a major volcanic eruption drill held in Garachico last December. That simulation included homes being treated as destroyed and hundreds of people being evacuated as emergency teams tested their response procedures.

Officials subsequently identified areas where coordination and communication could be improved. Lessons from exercises such as these are used to refine response times and ensure different emergency services can work effectively together during a real incident.

The November exercise in La Laguna will have a different focus. Emergency teams will practise protecting and evacuating important historic and cultural assets in the UNESCO World Heritage city in the event of a serious incident.

Tenerife's emergency authorities say the exercises allow services to test existing plans under realistic conditions and identify weaknesses before an actual emergency occurs.

Residents and visitors in Guía de Isora, Vilaflor and La Laguna should be aware that increased emergency service activity may be visible during the exercises. Further information about any temporary restrictions or disruption is expected to be announced closer to the dates.