Evacuations as volcano rocks the Philippines
Print Edition
filipino authorities blocked roads to a popular tourist area near the capital yesterday as the Taal volcano belched plumes of ash and caused earthquakes.
A crater lake and nearby river dried up and officials have warned people against thinking the five-day eruption is waning.
Soldiers and police blocked villagers from going back to the island volcano and nearby towns to retrieve belongings, poultry and cattle.
“Activity in the past 24 hours has generally waned to a weak emission of steam-laden plumes,” the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said. But the region remained just a notch down from the agency’s highest level of alert.
No deaths, so far
Many houses and farms have been damaged by volcanic ash since the eruption started on Sunday, although no deaths or major injuries have been reported after tens of thousands of people evacuated.
Amid warnings of an imminent and more dangerous eruption, police cordoned off at least four towns near shores of a lake that surrounds the volcano. The move sparked arguments with villagers.
“We’ve lost everything. Our house got damaged. But I need to retrieve my pots and cooking ware and other things. They should not be very, very strict,” said 59-year-old Erlinda Landicho.
Landicho, who fled with her son from Lemery municipality as the volcano erupted, was among a throng of villagers stopped by police from reentering the ash-blanketed town. A firetruck blocked a key access road and police set up checkpoints. Beyond the barricade, Lemery looked like a ghost town partly shrouded in swirling ash.
More than 125,000 people fled their homes just in Batangas, which has declared a state of calamity to allow the faster release of emergency funds.
At least 373 evacuation sites were crammed with displaced villagers and needed more ash masks, portable toilets, bottled water and sleeping mats, according to a provincial disaster-response office.
Cavite city was also placed under a state of calamity after being swamped by thousands of displaced villagers from nearby Batangas province.
Among those displaced were about 5,000 people who live on the island.
The island is a popular tourist destination renowned for its stunning view of the volcano’s crater lake and lush hills teeming with trees and birds. Some villagers have slipped past checkpoints to retrieve some of the hundreds of cows and horses they left behind, prompting the coast guard and police to intensify a security cordon.
About four villages exist on the island despite it being a permanent danger zone. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana recommended villagers should not be allowed back.
The 311-meter Taal is one of the world’s smallest volcanoes but also the second-most restive of about two dozen active volcanoes across the Philippines. The Philippines lie in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the string of faults around the ocean basin where most of the world’s earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.
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