Phivolcs: Reports of major Mayon eruption false

SOLIDUM

LEGAZPI CITY—The country’s chief volcanologist sought to allay fears of a major eruption by Mayon Volcano, saying reports about it have no scientific basis.

Renato Solidum, head of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), said rumors about a major Mayon eruption were just that: rumors.

“The volcano does not really follow a certain cycle because eruption depends on the factors that would rely on the volume of the magma and how fast the magma would go up to the summit of the volcano,” Solidum said in a phone interview.

He said Phivolcs based its projections on volcanic activity and not on patterns.

Since alert Level 2 was raised over Mayon last week, Phivolcs has recorded no sign of eruption, he said.

Among the signs of an eruption would be increased volcanic quake frequency, lava flow, steam emission and changes in steam color, he said.

Solidum added that alert Level 2 did not mean imminent eruption. It is under alert Level 3 that an eruption is expected in weeks. Under alert Level 4, eruption is expected within days.

Mayon is the country’s most active volcano. Its most destructive eruption took place 200 years ago in 1814, killing over 2,000 people and burying most of Barangay Cagsawa in Daraga town.

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda has a standing order for the evacuation of all residents within a 6-to-10-kilometer radius around the volcano under alert Level 3.

The last time that alert Level 4 was raised over Mayon was in December 2009, forcing thousands of residents living along the slope of the volcano to spend Christmas and New Year in evacuation centers.

On May 7 last year, the volcano spewed ash and rocks in an explosion that killed five climbers—three Germans, a Spaniard and their Filipino guide. Inquirer Southern Luzon