Residents urged to increase vigilance amid threat of Mayon lahar

Lahar poses danger to residents living beyond the danger zones around Mayon Volcano, an official of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) said Saturday.

Ed Laguerta, regional chief of PHIVOLCS in Bicol, said they are urging residents to increase their vigilance amid the threat of deadly lahar flow as heavy rain hit the province amid Mayon Volcano's increased restiveness.

Laguerta said the 8- to 9-kilometer extended danger zone and buffer area around the volcano are "enough" given the spate of eruptions and the possibility of a larger, vulcanian-type explosion, but lahar threatens all low-lying areas.

"Sa ngayon po as pagsabog, tama na po yun [danger zone]. Ang sa lahar kasi wala namang distance 'yan eh. As long as you are in a low-lying area, fronting channel, puwede kayong abutin depende sa volume na ibababa nito," he said in an interview on Balitanghali.

"Dagdagan po nila ng pagiging mapagmatyag 'pag pinag-usapan natin 'yung lahar, kasi wala nang distance 'yan," he also said.

Areas that are prone to lahar flows are plotted on a map, copies of which have been given to the local government unit for information dissemination among residents who may be living in high-, moderate-, and low-danger zones for volcanic mudflows, he said.

The PHIVOLCS has earlier warned that lahar --- water combined with volcanic fragments like ash and rock -- could bury nearby villages.

In an earlier advisory, PHIVOLCS said residents living near river channels in the villages of Buyuan, Miisi, Mabinit, Basud, San Vicente, Buang, Quirangay and Masarawag-Maninila may be affected by lahar flow.

Authorities are not dismissing the possibility of a stronger eruption of the Mayon, one of the Philippines' most active volcanoes, as it continues to spew lava and tall plumes of ash. A vulcanian-type explosion will be marked by a larger volume of pyroclastic density currents and taller columns of ash, Laguerta said.

More than 80,000 residents have fled to safety as of Friday afternoon, nearly a week after the volcano started its current spate of activity. —Nicole-Anne C. Lagrimas/ALG, GMA News