56,000 villagers flee as volcano erupts again

THE PHILIPPINES’ most active volcano spewed fountains of redhot lava and massive ash plumes in a dazzling but dangerous new eruption yesterday that sent 56,000 villagers fleeing to evacuation centres.

Lava fountains gushed up 2,300ft (700m) above Mount Mayon’s crater and ash plumes rose up to 1.9 miles (3km), according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

An explosive eruption at noon local time on Monday was the most powerful since the volcano started acting up more than a week ago.

“We couldn’t sleep last night because of the loud rumblings. It sounded like an airplane that’s about to land,” 59-yearold farmer Quintin Velardo, 59, said at an evacuation centre in Legazpi city, where he took his wife, children and grandchildren.

Despite the danger, he said he needed to return to his village, about five miles from the erupting volcano, to take his livestock to safety. A few minutes later, the volcano belched a massive column of greyish ash.

Authorities warned that a violent eruption may occur in hours or days, characterised by more rumblings and pyroclastic flows – superheated gas and volcanic debris that race down the slopes at high speeds, vaporising everything in their path. After Monday’s explosion, officials raised Mayon’s alert level to four on a scale of five, and the danger zone was expanded to five miles from the crater, requiring thousands more residents to be evacuated, including at least 12,000 who returned to their homes last week as Mayon’s rumblings temporarily eased and then scrambled back to the emergency shelters this week.

At least 56,217 people were taking shelter in 46 evacuation camps yesterday and army troops and police were helping move more villagers from their homes, officials said.