On Saturday, a small but active volcano, situated south of Manila, ejected a 1.5-kilometer plume, causing authorities to elevate the alert level and evacuate over a thousand residents from the area.
The alert level for the Taal volcano, located approximately 70 kilometres (45 miles) south of central Manila, was raised to level 3 from level 2, indicating that ‘magmatic intrusion at the main crater may further fuel subsequent eruptions,’ according to the seismology and volcanology department.
‘Magma in the shallow section of the crater mixed with water, is creating phreatomagmatic activity,’ said Renato Solidum, head of the volcanology office, to DZMM radio.
Solidum, on the other hand, predicted that activity would be less explosive than in January 2020, and that ash fall would be limited to settlements within the volcano, which is located in the centre of a lake.
According to the disaster organisation, more than 1,100 people living in the lakeside settlements around the volcano were evacuated. Fishermen and fish cage workers from the lake were among the evacuees.
Taal erupted with a column of ash and steam as high as 15 kilometres in January 2020, forcing over 100,000 people to flee, dozens of flights to be cancelled, and thick ash falling as far as Manila.
Taal is one of the smallest active volcanoes on the planet. Despite its small size (311 meters/1,020 feet), it is devastating, with a 1911 eruption killing almost 1,300 people.
The Philippines is located on the Pacific Ocean’s ‘Ring of Fire,’ a ring of volcanoes that is also prone to earthquakes.
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