Vulcan, Roman god

AS Taal Volcano began to spew lava on Monday, fear of an imminent major eruption fills the air.

As we write, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) raised its status to alert level 4.

The volcano is located in Batangas province, a barangay in the historic town of Taal. It is considered the country’s second most active volcano.

It is also among the world’s smallest.

• Phivolcs is hinting at a possible hazardous eruption within hours or days.

Its alert system has five levels with Alert Level 5, the highest, meaning a hazardous eruption is in progress.

• Taal Volcano has recorded some of its most hazardous eruptions in the past.

These were observed in 1965, 1911, and 1754.

Phivolcs says a hazardous eruption entails flow of ashes, rocks, gas at speeds of more than 60 kph [37 mph] horizontally which can move across the lake.

• TRIVIA PA MORE (Various Sources): Some volcanoes have lakes and hot springs where people can swim or go boating. They can be fun as long as you know when to stay away from them, says R.S. Punongbayan in the book, Volcanoes of the Philippines.

• Volcano comes from the Roman god, Vulcan, the god of the forge. Many of the stories told by people about volcanoes are make-believe, invented by people.

• Each year, about 500,000 detectable earthquakes occur in the world. About 100,000 of these can be felt and about 100 of them cause damage.

• An electric eel can produce a shock of up to 650 volts.

• Send your questions on anything and everything to Kuya Kim through my Twitter account @kuyakim_atienza using #AlaminKayKuyaKim.