Many Mayon evacuees allowed home as alert level is lowered

LEGAZPI CITY — Volcanologists lowered the alert level around Mayon Volcano yesterday and said about half of the 40,000 evacuees can return home.

Volcanologists said the threat of a large eruption was fading and the 20,000 evacuees who live farthest from the volcano can go home after 11 days in evacuation centers in this city.

"There may still be some moderate to small explosions but there will be no big bang," said volcanologist Ed Villacorte.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) lowered the alert level around the volcano from five, the maximum, to four.

Level five meant that villagers within eight kilometers of the volcano had to evacuate, while level four allows villagers as close as seven kilometers to remain at home.

Despite the evacuation, many men stayed in the danger zone to tend the carrots, radishes, tomatoes and other crops renowned for thriving in the rich, soot-black soil around the volcano. Other men traveled daily from evacuation centers to their farms. Many complained that limited work time and transportation to and from their fields caused them economic hardship.

Villacorte said 20,000 villagers can return home but the others have to remain in evacuation centers while scientists assess the risk of mudslides.

"This is the biggest threat now," said Villacorte.

Scientists said some five million cubic meters of ash and earth which the volcano has spewed out since it erupted June 24 and rains from the typhoon could send the deposits sliding down to villages at its foot.

Cedric Daep, provincial public safety chief, said areas threatened by mudflows include the entire Barangay Mabinit and parts of Pawa, Bigaa, Padang, Buyuan, Bonga and Matanag, all in this city, and Miisi in Daraga.

The June 24 eruption sent ash clouds billowing 15 kilometers into the air and blasted red hot boulders 600 meters high.

Three days after that eruption, magma burst through rock ceilings in three smaller explosions. Last Friday, two eruptions blew clouds of ash two kilometers high.

Scientists said the volcano has spewed out more than five million cubic meters of lava since June 24.

A peak of about 45,000 evacuees crowded 31 makeshift emergency shelters, sleeping as many as 80 to a room in elementary schools, churches and other public buildings.

The Department of Health said the congestion has given rise to cases of diarrhea due to the lack of potable water, as well as hypertension.

Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit said though that the incidence of respiratory ailments has considerably gone down.

Authorities said the eruption damaged about 20 hectares of vegetables and root crops in four barangays here. The total damage to crops in the affected towns was placed at P37.2 million, according to provincial agriculturist Angeles Nieva. — Felix de los Santos, Celso Amo, Cet Dema—tera and Ella Oducayen