Pyroclastic flows seen this week

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) warned yesterday that Mayon volcano could unleash deadly pyroclastic flows within the week as it continued to display intense unrest marked by persistent ash explosions and volcanic earthquakes.

Phivolcs director Renato Solidum said the explosions have become hazardous because of the ashfall and the alert status will be raised as soon as pyroclastic flow is observed.

A pyroclastic flow is a “turbulent mass of ejected fragmented volcanic materials like ash and rocks, mixed with hot gases that flow downslope at a very high speed of more than 60 kilometers per hour (kph).”

Solidum said raising alert level 5 - the highest alert level - requires pyroclastic materials to be spewed by explosive eruption.

Mayon’s eruption is much smaller than Mt. Pinatubo’s eruption of 11 billion cubic meters in 1991 since it has smaller amount of volcanic deposits.

He said the pyroclastic flows from Mayon may reach as far as six to seven kilometers from the summit, compared to Pinatubo’s 15 to 20 kilometers.

Solidum said they observed increased volcanic activity since they raised the alert level from 3 to 4 last Dec. 20.

“We already observed small pyroclastic flows on the southern slopes of the volcano but these were related to the detachment of lava fragments,” he said, adding that the ash explosions recorded during the past 24 hours were stronger than the explosions last Sunday.

However, he said they will maintain the eight-kilometer permanent danger zone on the southern sector of the volcano and the seven-kilometer zone on the northern sector and “will recommend the extension of the danger zone if necessary.”

Solidum also clarified that the volcano may still calm down or settle with moderate eruptions during the week.

As of 7 a.m. yesterday, Phivolcs has detected 1,051 volcanic earthquakes, a slight decrease compared to the number of detected earthquakes in the last two days, with 66 ash explosions observed during good visibility.

Phivolcs said 280 audible booming and rumbling sounds were intermittently heard during the past 24 hours.

Red hot lava also continuously flowed down the Bonga-Buyuan, Miisi and Lidong gullies, it added.

Because of the possibility of an explosion, the Department of Tourism (DOT) yesterday warned foreign and local tourists against going near the declared danger zone. 

“With the hazardous eruption of Mayon very imminent, any form of human activity such as mountain climbing and other tourism promotion activities within the declared danger zone is absolutely prohibited,” DOT said.

Stubborn

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda has ordered Task Force Mayon to find 56 families still holding out inside the high-risk areas despite the mandatory evacuation order as well as the 24-hour curfew inside the six-kilometer permanent danger zone up to the eight-kilometer high-risk zone.

“I told this problem to President Arroyo who came over yesterday afternoon to look into the status and problems of our disaster response phase,” Salceda told The STAR in a text message.

Col. Marlou Salazar, commanding officer of the 901st Infantry Brigade, said the Army assigned to the joint Task Force Mayon will continue to conduct house-to-house searches for the 56 families.

“But we also need the help of the mayors as well as their city and municipal disaster coordinating council personnel who are familiar with their constituents to help find these persons,” Salazar said.

Salazar said some 120 Army personnel assigned to Task Force Mayon will conduct the searches starting today.

Senior Superintendent William Macavinta, Albay police director, also said police in Tabaco City have put up additional check points in Buang as well as continue to conduct patrols to tell those who are holding out to immediately move to their designated evacuation centers.

“We went as far as the slope of the volcano in Barangay Lidong in Sto. Domingo as well as Malilipot to monitor the mandatory evacuation as well as enforce the curfew,” Macavinta said.

Bets make their presence felt

At the Senate, Sen. Manuel Roxas II asked the government and the public to join hands and help Albay residents feel the spirit of the Yuletide season despite the dangers posed by the impending eruption.

Roxas and Sen. Noynoy Aquino flew to Albay on Tuesday and distributed relief goods to evacuees at the Daraga North Central School in Daraga, the Gogon Central School in Barangay Gogon and Bagumbayan Central School in Bagumbayan, both in Legazpi City.

Sen. Loren Legarda also launched her own relief operations.

The relief goods were distributed in coordination with local authorities to 763 families at the Gogon Elementary School, 431 families at the Albay Central School, 635 in the Daraga North Elementary School, and 142 in the Camalig Elementary School.

Not to be outdone, former President Joseph Estrada also distributed 5,000 bags of relief goods.

Estrada was accompanied by his running mate, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, in six evacuation centers in Tabaco, Sto. Domingo, and Malilipot, all in Albay.

GMA flies to Albay

Meanwhile, President Arroyo headed straight to Albay to assess the situation in the province after arriving from a three-day vacation in Hong Kong.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde, who was with the President, said Mrs. Arroyo wanted to look into the situation of the evacuation centers and would meet members of the provincial disaster coordinating council of Albay, including Salceda and officials of Phivolcs.

President Arroyo was criticized by some sectors for going to Hong Kong to take a vacation with her family after her short visit to Copenhagen in Denmark last week even while most of the government agencies were already on alert for the possible eruption of Mayon volcano.

Remonde said the President was fulfilling her promise to her grandchildren for a trip to Hong Kong Disneyland.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita reiterated that the President deserves some quality time with her family from time to time just like anybody else.

He said the President’s decision to go straight to Albay was not because of the criticism about her Hong Kong trip.

“In the first place I don’t see why people should criticize the President’s trip to Hong Kong,” Ermita said.

Ermita noted that all the government agencies involved in the evacuation and relief efforts for Albay have already established themselves in the province.

He said the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), through the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC), has undertaken enough preparations for the impending eruption of Mayon.

“Our objective is zero casualty and we are happy to note that when Mayon started to rumble and show its activity, the preparedness of the NDCC through the OCD (Office of Civil Defense) and the local PDCC was activated,” Ermita said.

He said the total number of evacuees in Albay has gone up from 9,428 to 9,880 families or 47,137 persons in 26 designated evacuation centers.

The NDCC has facilitated the release of around 10,200 sacks of rice worth P9.3 million. - With Mayen Jaymalin, Christina Mendez, Marvin Sy, Jose Rodel Clapano, Jaime Laude, AP