This weekend the Mayon volcano in the Philippines became active. Streams of lava have started to erupt, and an explosive eruption is possible.
To reduce the impacts that the eruption may produce, 15.000 people have already been evacuated. What is the situation of the Mayón?
Magma landslides
On Monday night the first magma detachments began to be seen. Today it has reached up to 2 kilometers away from the crater. The volcano is located about 350 kilometers southeast of Manila.
Faced with the possible violent eruption of the volcano, the authorities maintain an alert level 3 (critical) out of a scale of 5. The eruption that can take place will be very violent and cause extensive damage. The eruption is imminent, although it could take days or weeks to happen.
The area considered a danger zone due to the proximity of the volcano is within a radius of 7 kilometers from the crater. A total of 15.410 people who are in said danger zone have been evacuated to avoid possible deaths. They have been placed in temporary shelters, schools and sports centers.
Mayón Volcano
This volcano has erupted about 50 times in the last five centuries. One of his first seizures began on Saturday and gray clouds were emitted leaving ash in the surroundings.
Last Sunday two more seizures took place which caused 158 rock falls. It is these landslides that made the population alert and begin the evacuation.
The activity of the volcano has been noticed due to the loud roars, the ash rain and the strong smell of sulfuric acid.
Now we just have to wait for the eruption to take place and that, although it is very violent, it causes the least possible damage to the population and their property. Thanks to the means of help, many people will avoid being harmed.