Kanlaon ash clouds force airlines to cancel flights to Aklan, Negros

Ash clouds spewing from the Kanlaon Volcano in Negros Occidental caused flights to Kalibo, Aklan and Dumaguete City in Oriental Negros to be suspended yesterday, officials said.

The clouds reached heights of 500 meters above the crater of Kanlaon, which has been intermittently emitting ash and steam since January, officials said.

"We are on alert level one, meaning it is still a low level of activity," said Edwin de la Cruz of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

Philippine Airlines said it canceled two flights to the Kalibo airport, gateway to the popular Boracay beach resort.

Cebu Pacific, Asian Spirit and Air Philippines were also forced to cancel their flights to Caticlan and Dumaguete.

At 2,435-meters, Kanlaon is the highest peak in the Visayas. It has erupted 23 times since 1866.

"The emitted steam ash clouds reached heights of up to 500 meters above the active crater before being drifted to the northwest and northeast by the prevailing winds," Phivolcs said in an advisory.

It advised residents of nearby villages not to enter a four-kilometer permanent danger zone due to "hazardous steam-driven explosions" that may occur without warning.

Five other airports are within 120 kilometers of the Kanlaon crater, including the Mactan International Airport in Cebu, but flight operations there are continuing, aviation officials said. — AFP, Rainier Allan Ronda