BULUSAN Volcano erupted again on Sunday, a week after a similar steam-driven explosion, and spewed ash across a wider area, local authorities said.
The latest phreatic eruption started at 3:37 a.m. and lasted for 18 minutes, based on the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology’s (Phivolcs) bulletin.
“More areas have been reached by ash fall,” the Sorsogon provincial office said.
Among the areas affected are the towns of Juban, Irosin, Casiguran, and Magallanes, the provincial government said in an advisory as response teams started clearing operations along main roads and assessing the need for evacuation.
Residents of Juban who evacuated last week have since gone back home after their villages were cleared of ash fall.
In the town of Bulusan, the municipal disaster management office said it has evacuated some residents, particularly those who were most vulnerable.
Power, water, and telecommunication services were all “functional,” it said.
Phivolcs said alert level 1 remains in effect for Mt. Bulusan, which means it is in an “abnormal condition” and sudden eruptions are possible.
The agency first raised the alert level from zero on June 5 following a 17-minute eruption that started at 10:37 a.m.
“Local government units and the public are reminded that entry into the 4-kilometer radius Permanent Danger Zone must be strictly prohibited and that vigilance in the 2-kilometer Extended Danger Zone on the southeast sector must be exercised due to the increased possibilities of sudden and hazardous phreatic eruptions,” Phivolcs said.
Mt. Bulusan, located about 565 kilometers southeast of the capital Manila, last erupted in June 2017, which was recorded as a “minor phreatic eruption” by Phivolcs. — MSJ