LGUs told: Keep danger zones around volcanoes

THE Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) on Wednesday reiterated its reminder to concerned local government units (LGUs) to make sure that the permanent danger zones (PDZs) around all active volcanoes are totally uninhabited even under Alert Level 0.

Phivolcs Director Teresito “Toto” Bacolcol issued the statement amid the “abnormal” activity of the active volcanoes, namely the Mayon Volcano in Albay; Taal Volcano in Taal, Batangas; Bulusan Volcano in Sorsogon; and Kanlaon Volcano in Negros island boundary, as indicated by their respective parameters, including volcanic earthquakes and sulfur dioxide gas emission.

Bacolcol told the “Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon” on PTV-4 that the volcanoes’ PDZs must be completely free from the public even if the alert status is under Level 0.

“We reiterate our reminder and warning at the same time to the concerned LGUs and the public to be always vigilant and desist from entering the volcanoes’ permanent danger zones to minimize risks from sudden explosions, rock fall events and landslides,” Bacolcol said.

Interviewed by The Manila Times, Bacolcol said the volcanoes’ current alert status would remain as their parameters have not indicated a slowdown, especially in seismic activity.

He said his agency has been continuously monitoring the movements of the volcanoes since their alert statuses were raised.

“But for now, we don’t have significant changes in their parameters that would warrant us to raise or lower the alert levels,” Bacolcol said.

Records showed that Mayon Volcano has been on Level 2 since December 2023 while Taal Volcano in Batangas province is under Level 1 since July 2022.

Phivolcs said Kanlaon Volcano on Negros island has been on Level 1 since March 2023 while Bulusan Volcano in Sorsogon province was also on the same level since October 2023.

It raises alert status to Level 1 on a volcano if there is a slight increase in volcanic earthquakes and steam or gas activity, among others, while under Level 2, there is a moderate level of unrest.

Last month, Phivolcs downgraded Mayon’s alert status from Level 3 to its current level after it recorded “a general decline” in unrest.

While under Level 3, residents living near the 4-kilometer PDZ were taken to higher and safer grounds, and stayed in evacuation centers for several months.

The parameters that are being monitored by Phivolcs in determining the volcanoes’ alert status include the volcanic earthquakes, rockfall events, pyroclastic density currents and sulfur dioxide emission, among others.