LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines — For the first time since its phreatic eruption on June 5, zero volcanic quakes were recorded in Mt. Bulusan in the past 24 hours.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported yesterday that sulfur dioxide emission also dipped to 200 tons while plumes rose 50 meters.
Alan Bernardo, Phivolcs volcano monitoring division duty officer, said Bulusan would remain under Alert Level 1 despite the drop in seismic activity.
“We still need to observe the overall condition of Bulusan. The downward trend must be observed in all its abnormal parameters before we can conclude that it is going back to normal status,” he told The STAR.
Bernardo said lowering Bulusan’s status to Alert Level 0 or normal may send a wrong signal that people can resume their activities near the danger zone of the volcano.
“If there will be a sustained decrease in all the abnormal parameters of Bulusan, only then can we tell that it is heading back to normal. We cannot tell that yet,” he said.
Before the volcano fell silent, Phivolcs recorded eight volcanic quakes from Monday to Thursday.