‘Magma keeps rising to Mayon’s crater’

LEGAZPI CITY , Philippines — A prolonged lava flow is anticipated in Mayon Volcano as fresh magma is continuously ascending to the summit crater, causing “very high” sulfur dioxide emissions that reached 6,703 tons, state volcanologists said over the weekend.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the emissions were accompanied by 993 rockfall events, 53 volcanic earthquakes and 15 pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) in the past three days.

Paul Alanis, Phivolcs resident volcanologist at the Lignon Hill Observatory in this city, said the sustained high values in the volcano’s abnormal parameters indicated that magma is continuously rising to the surface.

The rising magma inflated the northwest and southwest portions of Mayon.

Alanis said thick clouds prevented the Phivolcs team from conducting visual observation of Mayon in the past three days.

“Our instruments continued to record Mayon’s seismic activity, although we could not observe it visually because of thick clouds,” he said.

In the past 24 hours, Phivolcs recorded sulfur dioxide emissions of 2,989 tons, 270 rockfall events, nine volcanic quakes and three PDCs.

On Friday and Saturday, Phivolcs recorded 2,132 and 1,582 tons of sulfur dioxide emissions, 362 and 361 rockfall events, 39 and five volcanic earthquakes, and five and seven PDCs, respectively.

Alanis said the figures could still fluctuate and the high abnormal parameters indicate that Mayon remains in a high level of unrest.

Phivolcs said that slow lava effusion continued in the past 24 hours, with lava flows stretching to 2,800 and 1,400 meters along the Mi-isi Gully in Daraga and Bonga Gully in Legazpi City, respectively.

Meanwhile, Albay Gov. Edcel Greco Lagman said there was still no reason to expand the volcano’s six-kilometer permanent danger zone amid the possible threat of lahar flow.

Lagman said rains in the province have stopped.

“The rain has stopped in the past two to three days and there was hardly any rain felt (on Saturday), although we still maintain an alert status,” Lagman said.

Earlier, Phivolcs warned that heavy downpour over Mayon could trigger lahar flows.

Lagman said at least 5,788 families in 25 barangays located within the six-kilometer permanent danger zone have been evacuated.

“This may increase to 7,323 families if we experience a complex calamity or typhoon as well as the present abnormal activity of Mayon,” he said. — Bella Cariaso