Mount Mayon, one of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines, erupted on Friday, October 30, sending a column of ash roughly 3,000 meters high into the sky. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology described the event as a moderately explosive eruption. While no damages or casualties have been reported so far, the institute has elevated the alert level from 2 to 3 on a scale reaching up to 5.
In response to the increased activity, authorities have called for evacuations within a 6-kilometer radius surrounding the crater, which is located approximately 330 kilometers southeast of Manila. The ash plume was observed drifting southwest toward inhabited areas. The institute warned that Mayon has entered a new phase of magmatic eruption, increasing the likelihood of dangerous lava flows and pyroclastic flows affecting the upper to middle slopes of the volcano in the coming days and weeks.
Local authorities on the main island of Luzon have been urged to facilitate evacuations in areas near the crater. Additionally, aviation has been advised to avoid flying in proximity to the volcano due to the affected airspace. Standing at 2,462 meters with an almost perfect cone shape, Mayon is one of three Philippine volcanoes that have shown the highest activity this year.
This event follows a significant displacement in June 2023, when nearly 13,000 people living on the volcano's slopes were moved to evacuation centers to protect them from ash and toxic gases. The Philippines frequently experiences seismic and volcanic activity due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where tectonic plates converge. The most powerful eruption in the country in recent decades occurred at Mount Pinatubo in 1991, which resulted in over 800 deaths and produced an ash cloud that traveled thousands of kilometers.
Sources: Le Monde Sciences.