Marcos asks residents to follow evacuate orders

New lava dome emerges in Mayon – Phivolcs

MANILA, Philippines — Amid mounting concerns over a potential “hazardous eruption,” President Marcos appealed to residents near Mayon Volcano in Albay yesterday to follow local orders to evacuate, as state seismologists discovered the emergence of a newly formed lava dome – a grim indicator of escalating volcanic unrest.

In a message posted on his social media accounts, the President assured all families fleeing high-risk areas around the restive volcano of continued government assistance, including food packs.

“With the province of Albay placed under a state of calamity due to the eruption of the Mayon Volcano, we remind Bicolanos to follow the recommendations and evacuation instructions of your local government to ensure everyone’s safety,” Marcos said in Filipino.

Albay Gov. Edcel Greco Lagman placed the province under a state of calamity on Friday to allow the local government to tap into the quick response funds and provide support to some 3,000 families forced to evacuate as Mayon Volcano is under Alert Level 3.

As the forced evacuation of thousands living within the six-kilometer permanent danger zone continues, Marcos said the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is already providing immediate assistance and support to those who fled their homes.

He said these include the P114-million Quick Response Fund from the DSWD Central Office, the P5-million standby fund from the DSWD Field Office Region 5 and the 179,000 family food packs available in Disaster Response Centers.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. said evacuations continue in 20 villages nearest to the volcano. “Our latest reports have it that 2,894 families or 10,260 persons were brought to 16 evacuation centers,” the Presidential Communications Office quoted him as reporting to the President.

“Air transport to Albay is suspended so the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) has prepared alternative transport means. JTF (Joint Task Force) Bicolandia activated by Solcom (Southern Luzon Command) and other DRRUs (disaster risk reduction units) activated in the area,” he added.

New lava dome

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said that the new lava dome at Mayon’s summit emerged Friday night as the pre-existing dome was pushed out in increments following the numerous rockfall events since the first week of June.

 In an interview with dzBB radio, Phivolcs officer-in-charge Teresito Bacolcol warned that this new lava dome could contain high amounts of gas that could get trapped and may result in explosive activity if it accumulates.

“If the gas can’t escape easily, it can accumulate in the dome; and if there is a sudden gas release from the dome, it can result in explosive activity,” said Bacolcol, who described the potential incident as similar to the 2018 explosion.

He said it could also result in an “effusive eruption” or magma gradually being forced out to the surface as what happened in 2014.

The Phivolcs, which monitors the new lava dome and Mount Mayon’s high levels of unrest, listed 59 rockfall events in the past 24 hours since Friday, lower than the 199 events recorded between June 8 and 9.

Sulfur dioxide emissions were also measured at 417 tons per day on Friday, lower than the 500 tons per day baseline of Mayon, and one volcanic earthquake.

There was moderate emission of plumes in the volcano with a fair crater flow observed while the volcano edifice remains inflated.

Bacolcol said they are monitoring sulfur dioxide emissions, as well as pyroclastic density currents and lava fountaining that could merit the raising of the alert level to Level 4.

He noted that Mayon Volcano usually erupts between three to 10 years from its last eruption in January 2018.

Evacuation

In an interview with dzBB radio, Gov. Lagman said authorities should prepare for the mandatory evacuation of 8,000 households should the danger zone be extended to a seven-kilometer radius.

“Our estimate might reach around 8,000 families if it escalates from Alert Level 3 to Level 4,” the governor said in Filipino.

Mayon Volcano remains on Alert Level 3, which means there is a high level of unrest and that hazardous eruption is possible within weeks or days.

Eugene Escobar, officer-in-charge of the Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office (Apsmo), said that at present, they are anticipating 4,000 families or 20,000 persons being evacuated.

“Big number of evacuees came from the danger zones of Guinobatan, Camalig, Daraga and Tabaco City; with some families also moved to evacuation centers in Ligao City,” Escobar said.

As of 1:30 p.m. yesterday, he said some 1,819 families or 6,681 persons were already taken to various evacuation centers and other government facilities across Albay.

For its part, the DSWD assured the public that around P1.04 billion worth of food and non-food items are also available at the National Resource Operations Center in Pasay City, Visayas Disaster Resource Center and in the warehouses of DSWD field offices.

Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian was in Albay visiting at least two evacuation centers yesterday.

“I’m here with the DSWD team to see to it that the instruction of the President to make sure everything is ready just in case things turn for the worst is carried out,” Gatchalian said from Anislag Elementary School in Daraga City, where personnel of the DSWD Field Office 5 had distributed family food packs.

Gatchalian, who had met with Lagman, asked the government to provide them additional warehouses so the agency could send more food packs. DSWD has started sending 102,000 family food packs for the evacuees.

Marcos said he is kept abreast on the Mayon situation by the Office of Civil Defense; the Departments of Agriculture, of Health and of Environment and Natural Resources; and the Phivolcs.

Taal and Kanlaon

Meanwhile, the Phivolcs is also monitoring unrest at Taal Volcano in Batangas and Kanlaon Volcano in Negros Occidental.

In Taal, Bacolcol noted that there were 11 volcanic earthquakes and four volcanic tremors that lasted three to 97 minutes long.

There was also streaming activity of plumes of up to 1,500 meters in the early afternoon while sulfur dioxide emissions measured 2,941 tons.

Bacolcol said this could imply that there is movement of magma within the volcano.

Taal is currently placed under Alert Level 1 or low-level unrest.

For Kanlaon, there were no volcanic earthquakes recorded and the volcano is under Alert Level 1 or low-level unrest.

However, there were 500-meter-tall plumes and moderate emissions while sulfur dioxide flux was measured at 1,089 tons per day last June 5.

Teodoro said he wants a “timely and orderly” evacuation of families affected not only near Mayon, but also around in Taal.

Teodoro, who chairs the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, ordered the immediate prepositioning of goods and assets for relief operations in areas affected by the two active and restive volcanoes. — Cet Dematera, Jose Rodel Clapano, Emmanuel Tupas, Sheila Crisostomo