‘Mayon’s deceiving behavior similar to past eruption episodes’

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines – “The deceiving behavior” being exhibited by Mayon Volcano is similar to that displayed during the 1984 and 2009 eruption episodes, a state geologist warned yesterday.

Geologist Paul Alanis of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said that based on the data yielded by the three leveling stations around Mayon, the surface of the volcano remains inflated. This indicates that magma intrusion is continuing inside the volcano despite a drop in volcanic earthquakes, rockfall events and sulfur dioxide emission.

According to the latest Phivolcs bulletin, no volcanic earthquake was recorded and there was only one rockfall event. The volcano emitted 606 tons of sulfur dioxide, which is still above the normal 500 tons per day.

But based on the ground deformation survey, pressure inside the volcano is continuing despite the presence of a lava dome that is partially blocking the crater.

Alanis cautioned that the lull in other abnormal parameters should not be taken to mean that Mayon’s condition is already going back to normal.

Alanis said that before Mayon proceeded to the very strong Vulcanian eruption, it first started with the doming of lava at the crater while volcanic earthquakes and sulfur dioxide emission was fluctuating almost every day.

“Two weeks after Mayon silently built up pressure inside its magma chamber, on Sept. 23, 1984 it erupted very violently, so strong that the crater wall facing Legazpi City collapsed (which is now known as the Bonga Gulley),” he recounted.

Phivolcs-Bicol chief volcanologist Ed Laguerta said that the present eruption parameters of Mayon might also follow the pattern of the 2009 eruption.

After a series of phreatic explosions, it went to lava fountaining, then to lava flow that lasted from July 2009 to January 2010.

“This means that if Mayon would not proceed to a strong Vulcanic eruption which is characterized mainly by pyroclastic flow as that of 1984, it may merely continue to lava flowing which is similar to the 2009 eruption pattern,” Laguerta explained.

The Albay provincial board has declared a state of emergency in the cities of Legazpi, Ligao and Tabaco and the towns of Guinobatan, Camalig, Santo Domingo, Malilipot and Daraga.

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda ordered the evacuation of residents in the areas after Philvocs raised Alert Level 3 on Mayon early last week.

The evacuees come from within the volcano’s six-kilometer permanent danger zone (PDZ) and eight-kilometer extended buffer zone (EBZ).

Based on previous eruptions, evacuation could last up to three months or more.

Salceda said the number of population at risk in Legazpi, Daraga and Santo Domingo which are all within the PDZ, as well as in the EBZ, has been substantially reduced.

Based on Albay’s updated population-at-risk figures, the total number of families directly at risk to pyroclastic materials and lava flow from a Mayon eruption now stands at 7,250 families, of which 2,898 are within the PDZ and 4,352 families in the EBZ of the volcano’s southeast and southwest quadrants.

Mayon evacuees get P39 M assistance

Salceda thanked President Aquino for the release of P39 million worth of calamity assistance for thousands of evacuees now temporarily sheltered in 29 evacuation centers in Albay province.

Salceda said Albay province needs financial help from the national government to achieve the zero-casualty goal because Albay’s resource provisions for evacuees could only last for two weeks.

Salceda said the President also assured him of continuous relief assistance in the event of the volcano’s eruption.

The calamity assistance, coursed through the Department of Social Welfare and Development, consisted of P29 million worth of rice supply good for 17 days and P6.6 million worth of 10,600 starter kits of mats, malong, blankets and dust masks for evacuees.

Salceda said the Office of Civil Defense also turned over P1.5 million worth of non-food items to Albay, while the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) provided P500,000 worth of food items, three water filtration machines and a week-long medical mission in evacuation centers.

The AFP has also deployed 30 trucks and 200 military personnel for massive evacuation. – With Helen Flores