Prepare To Evacuate, Mayon Residents Told

By Ephraim Aguilar (Inquirer)
Last updated 09:17am (Mla time) 07/16/2006

LEGAZPI CITY—Residents near Mt. Mayon have been advised to prepare for evacuation in case volcanic activity intensifies after lava began trickling down its slopes in a “mild and quiet eruption” on Friday.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvolcs) raised the volcano’s alert level status from level 1 to level 3 at about 6 p.m. on Friday after observing lava trickles in the southeast quadrant of the volcano.

“The sudden raising of the alert level status was due to the volcano’s rapid change brought about by mild explosions and detaching of volcano fragments,” said Ed Laguerta, resident volcanologist of the Phivolcs.

Alert level three means there is “relatively high unrest” in the volcano with volcanic quakes and tremors expected to become frequent ahead of an eruption.

The 2,474-meter Mt. Mayon, known for its near-perfect cone and one of the country’s 22 active volcanoes, last had a major eruption in July 2001, forcing the evacuation of about 50,000 people. It has erupted about 50 times since 1616.

Phivolcs warned that more explosive eruptions could occur “as gas-rich lavas are expelled” and warned residents to stay away from the six-kilometer permanent danger zone (PDZ).

On Saturday, officials extended the PDZ to 7 km on the southeastern slope, where most of the molten rocks and other debris have been rolling down since Friday.

Laguerta said the volcano’s southeast quadrant was the most critical area as volcanic flows travel to that direction, affecting areas here and in the towns of Sto. Domingo and Daraga.

Evacuation of residents in the highly critical areas will start as soon as Philvolcs raised the alert level to 4, said Cedric Daep, Albay provincial disaster action officer.

Daep said around 7,476 persons or 1,484 families live within the six-kilometer PDZ.

Daep said relief officials were stockpiling food and readying evacuation centers. Daep said groups have been formed to transport evacuees, provide security for abandoned communities, and provide health and sanitation services at the centers.

But officials said they won’t order any evacuation yet as they braced for a possible violent eruption that may take weeks.

“There has been an increased tendency toward a hazardous eruption,” Alejo Baloloy, a Phivolcs science research analyst said, but ruled out a sudden, major eruption.

“Right now, we are on a mild eruption phase, with high frequency tremors attributed to rockfalls by the detached lava from the dome.” He predicted a major eruption could take place “within weeks.”

On the streets of Legazpi City, capital of Albay province close to the volcano, some residents watched as boulders and other debris cascaded from the crater, stirring up brownish-grey clouds of volcanic dust in their wake.

“What is happening now is a mild and quiet type of eruption,” Renato Solidum, chief of Philvolcs said. “What we are watching is the rate by which this magma is being extruded. If it is faster and stronger, it will lead to more hazardous eruptions.”

Laguerta said red-hot boulders, some the size of cars, broke into smaller pieces after being expelled from the crater, piling up about 4 km down the southeastern slope.

On Friday night, a 2-km long streak of lava that looked like “burning embers” was seen slowly snaking down the southeastern slope, said Jukes Nunez, an operations officer with the provincial disaster officer.

Nunez said an eruption warning system was already in place for quick evacuation of nearby communities, and radio stations would also broadcast emergency calls.

“There is no more human activity” within the 6-7-km danger zone as of Saturday, he added.

Mayon’s most violent eruption in 1814 killed more than 1,200 people and buried an entire town in volcanic mud. An eruption in 1993 killed 79 people.

The Philippines is in the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where volcanic activities and earthquakes are common.

In June 1991, Mt. Pinatubo exploded in Zambales in one of the world’s biggest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century, killing about 800 people.

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