Filipina Soul

Volcanologists continue to monitor Mayon Volcano since it starting erupting quietly last Friday. Residents have been asked to evacuate the villages at the foot of the mountain as lava flowed down the slopes and clouds of ash were seen shooting into the sky Wednesday morning.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) raised alert level 3 on the volcano. Phivolcs director Renato Solidum said the volcano is showing signs of a major eruption, citing events leading to similar major eruptions in 1993, 2000, and 2001.

Volcanologist Ed Laguerta said Sunday that red-hot boulders, some the size of cars, broke into smaller pieces after being expelled from the crater, piling up about four kilometers (2.5 miles) down the southeastern slope.

By Thursday, some 4,000 farmers still refuse to evacuate the 6-kilometer permanent danger zone until they have at least harvested their crops, concern that once they leave the area they won’t know when they’ll be allowed to return.

Mount Mayon is one of the most majestic volcanoes of the world, with it’s perfect cone broken only by the lava and rocks that spew from its crater. On a clear day, one can see the tip of the mountain, as seen in this breathtaking photo from IvanAroundTown. Mayon is the Philippines’ most active volcano and have erupted more than 50 times for the past 400 years. The most destructive eruption was on February 1, 1814 when it buried the town of Cagsawa and 1,200 people died. Only the belltower of the church town has survived the destructive lava flow as a landmark of how violent the volcano can be. The last major series of eruptions was in 2001 that forced more than 60,000 residents to flee.

[News Source: Sun Star Network Online; Photos source: WorldIsRound]

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