Mayon erupts, prompting Level 3 alert and evacuation advice

Mayon Volcano erupted in a moderately explosive event on October 30, sending ash about 3,000 meters above its crater and prompting Philippine authorities to raise its alert level and urge evacuations near the volcano. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, known as Phivolcs, said the eruption occurred at 11:53 a.m. and marked a new phase of magmatic activity. The agency raised Mayon’s alert from Level 2 to Level 3 on a five-level scale. One report said the eruption lasted nearly six minutes. Phivolcs recommended evacuating people from the six-kilometer permanent danger zone around the volcano. It cited the risk of pyroclastic density currents, lava flows, rockfalls and other volcanic hazards. Pyroclastic density currents are fast-moving mixtures of hot gas, ash and volcanic debris that can descend a volcano’s slopes. The agency warned that the likelihood of lava flows and hazardous currents affecting Mayon’s upper and middle slopes had increased for the coming days and weeks. It also advised vigilance for lahars and sediment-laden streamflows in channels draining the volcano, particularly during heavy rain, according to one agency account. Phivolcs said...