Philippines raises alert level at rumbling Mayon volcano after rockfall, quakes
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Mayon is among the most active of 24 volcanoes in the Philippines.
PHOTO: AFP
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MANILA - The Philippines raised the alert level at the popular Mayon volcano by a notch on Thursday, after detecting volcanic earthquakes and hundreds of rockfall events.
The 2,462m volcano in central Albay province “is exhibiting magmatic eruption”, the state volcanology agency said in a statement.
At “alert level three” on a scale of five, Mayon has increased chances of lava flows and a potential for explosive activity within weeks or even days, it added.
The agency had elevated Mayon to “alert level two” on June 5.
It said people within a 6km radius of the volcano should be evacuated, while pilots should avoid flying their aircraft close to the volcano’s crater.
There are no major industries around the volcano, with most farming activities in the area consisting of subsistence crops.
Mayon is a draw for tourists because of its near-perfect conical shape. It is among the most active of 24 volcanoes in the Philippines, having erupted more than 50 times in the last four centuries.
The most destructive eruption came in February 1841 when lava flows buried a town and killed 1,200 people.
The Philippines is in the Pacific Ring of Fire, where volcanic activity and earthquakes are common. REUTERS
