OCD tells Negros residents to be on alert for ashfalls from Kanlaon
Evacuees tend to children as they sit by their tents set up in a shelter in Bago City in Negros Occidental a day after the eruption of Kanlaon Volcano on December 10, 2024. (File photo by FERDINAND R. EDRALIN / AFP)
MANILA, Philippines — Local government units (LGUs) in Panay, especially those in coastal areas facing Negros Island, were advised to remain on high alert for possible ashfall following the explosive eruption of Kanlaon Volcano.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) – Western Visayas issued an advisory early Tuesday morning, urging LGUs to specifically prepare to distribute masks to affected communities.
“Residents are also advised to stay indoors as much as possible and take necessary precautions to protect themselves from ash inhalation,” said OCD.
According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), an explosive eruption at the summit vent of Kanlaon Volcano began at 5:51 a.m. on Tuesday.
Phivolcs said the eruption produced a voluminous bent plume approximately 4,000 meters tall that drifted southwest.
“Pyroclastic density currents or PDCs descended the slopes on the general southern edifice based on IP and thermal camera monitors. Alert level 3 prevails over Kanlaon Volcano,” said Phivolcs.
