Number of evacuees reaches 27,000 with Mayon ‘very unpredictable’

As Mt. Mayon continued to spew lava on Saturday, the Philippine Institute for Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) continued to closely monitor its activities to determine whether or not an explosive eruption could take place.

"We're looking at the ground deformation. Talagang mayroong pa po tayong maaaring asahan na activity whether it's scenario one again, na continued lava excrution. Or, scenario two, magkakaroon po tayo ng explosive eruption," PHIVOLCS Volcano Monitoring and Eruption Prediction Department chief Maria Antonia Bornas told GMA 7 news program "24 Oras Weekend".

Given that Alert Level 3 remained raised over Mayon Volcano due to its "very unpredictable" activity, the PHIVOLCS advised the public against entering the sever-kilometer radius Extended Danger Zone (EDZ) around the volcano.

As of PHIVOLCS' 8 a.m. bulletin, Mayon's seismic monitoring network recorded five rockfall events.

Ash clouds were formed from the rockfall events, with "persistent" disintegration of lava on the advancing front of the flow heading southwest.

The Miisi lava flow advanced three kilometers from the summit crater within the Permanent Danger Zone (PDZ).

According to Friday measurements, Mayon was emmitting up to 1,131 tons of sulfur dioxide per day.

27,000 displaced

Meanwhile, the number of displaced residents in evacuation centers reached 27,000 on Saturday. Local authorities was reportedly running low on funds and had started making use of savings to provide the evacuees with relief.

Albay Governor Al Francis Bichara thus called on the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Center (NDRRMC) to hasten the release of quick response funds.

"So there's something wrong with the NDRRMC. Are they really serving the purpose? That office was created for the purpose of providing assistance in case of emergency. Eh kadalasan tapos na lahat, wala pa 'yung assistance," Bichara said.

With the NDRRMC yet to issue a statement on the funds, the provincial government has begun coordinating with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for the release of its internal revenue allotment.

Aside from relief goods, evacuees were also experiencing difficulties with shared bathroom and plumbing facilities, prompting the the Department of Health (DOH) to allocate P2 million for additional toilets units.

The Department of Education (DepEd) had also alloted P19 million for temporary learning centers as some schools in the area were scheduled to resume classes on Monday. — Margaret Claire Layug/DVM, GMA News