MANILA (AFP) – Philippine scientists said that a “hazardous eruption” of a volcano in the archipelago could be days or weeks away, and urged the evacuation of nearby residents from their homes.
Hundreds of families living around Mount Mayon in central Albay province are expected to be moved to safer areas after the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology raised the alarm.
Mayon, a near-perfect cone located about 330 kilometres southeast of the capital Manila, is considered one of the most volatile of the country’s 24 active volcanoes.
The seismology agency said it observed three fast-moving avalanches of volcanic ash, rock and gases, known as pyroclastic density currents (PDCs), on Mayon’s slopes yesterday.
There are “increased chances of lava flows and hazardous PDCs… and of potential explosive activity within weeks or even days”, the agency said, raising the alert level from two to three on a scale of zero to five.
“All necessary preparations are being done,” said Albay provincial disaster management agency’s officer-in-charge Eugene Escobar.
Officer for the agency Rommel Negrete said residents would be evacuated from Anoling village on the volcano’s slopes.
Meanwhile, Taal volcano, located about 50 kilometres south of Manila, has been releasing noxious sulphur dioxide this week, blanketing surrounding areas in smog.
