Taal Volcano posts phreatic explosion, spews 2,800-meter grayish plume

STILL RESTIVE Volcanic smog or “vog” envelops Taal Volcano in Batangas province in this photo taken at 3:30 p.m. from Tagaytay City in Cavite on Sept. 9, 2024. The volcano, which remains under Alert Level 1, records an “upwelling of hot volcanic fluids” in the volcano’s main crater lake, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. —PHOTO COURTESY OF SHIELA TAN

MANILA, Philippines — Taal Volcano erupted early Tuesday morning, according to the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in Calabarzon.

The OCD-Calabarzon said in a Facebook post that Taal registered a steam-driven or phreatic eruption at 5:58 a.m., citing an advisory from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

“Naganap ang steam-driven o phreatic na pagputok sa Bulkang Taal patungo sa timog-kanluran dakong 05:58 ng umaga,” OCD-Calabarzon said.

(The steam-driven or phreatic eruption at Taal Volcano towards the southwest happened at 5:58 a.m.)

READ: Taal Volcano: Phivolcs detects another phreatic eruption, 4 quakes

“Sumunod sa abiso ng awtoridad (follow advisories from authorities),” it added.

In a separate advisory, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) labeled this explosion of Taal Volcano as a “minor phreatomagmatic eruption.”

Phivolcs said the blast was recorded from the volcano island’s main crater and that it generated a 2,800-meter grayish plume.

READ: Taal Volcano logs 26 earthquakes in past 24 hours

Phivolcs did not specify how many minutes the eruption lasted.

A phreatic eruption occurs when water beneath the ground or on the surface is heated by magma, lava, hot rocks, or new volcanic deposits (for example, tephra and pyroclastic-flow deposits), Phivolcs explained.

Over the past 24 hours, Phivolcs detected two volcanic tremors that lasted four minutes.

Volcanic tremors are “continuous seismic signals with regular or irregular oscillations and low frequencies (typically 0.5–5 Hz) that can last for more than a minute.”

In its latest bulletin issued Tuesday morning, Phivolcs recorded the emission of 7,216 metric tons of sulfur dioxide from Taal’s main crater, which rose 600 meters high before drifting southwest.

Phivolcs classified the volcano’s latest spewing activity as “moderate emission.”

However, there was no reported upwelling of hot volcanic fluids in the Main Crater Lake on Taal Volcano Island, locally known as “Pulo,” which sits in the middle of Taal Lake.

No volcanic smog, or “vog,” was also observed during the latest monitoring period.

Alert Level 1, which indicates “low-level unrest,” remains in effect over Taal Volcano, the state volcanologist said.

Phivolcs, however, reminded the public that Taal Volcano is still in an “abnormal condition.”

Phivolcs reiterated that under Alert Level 1, entry into the volcano island’s main crater, the Daang Kastila fissure area, and the Mt. Tabaro eruption site, is not allowed.