14,360 evacuated as lava flows from Mayon

ALMOST 4,000 families in Albay province have been evacuated as of Monday following Mayon Volcano’s increased activity since last week, with lava having started to flow in the past 24 hours.

Of the 14,360 displaced persons, 13,792 are spread across 22 evacuation centers while the rest have sought shelter elsewhere, according to the June 12 update from the national disaster management council.

The evacuees come from villages in Tabaco City and the towns of Camalig, Daraga, Guinobatan, Ligao, and Malilipot.

Mayors of these towns and others around the volcano, in a meeting on Monday with national officials on Monday, proposed the construction of more evacuation sites to address overcrowding and in line with laws on safe spaces, according to a statement from the Albay provincial government.

Tabaco Mayor Krisel Lagman-Luistro further called for building houses as permanent relocation for families in and around Mayon’s danger zones.

“If we have more resettlement sites for the affected families, we will not have to worry about situations as we have now,” Ms. Luistro said in Filipino.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), in its June 12 bulletin, said it recorded 21 volcanic earthquakes, 260 rockfall events, and three pyroclastic density current events in the 24 hours from 5 a.m. Sunday.

“Lava flow activity from the summit crater commenced,” it said.

Food, medicine and other aid packages are being distributed to the evacuees, according to the national and local governments.

The Albay provincial government also said Health Secretary Teodoro J. Herbosa has given authority for the purchase of “stable medical supplies in anticipation for a long evacuation period.”

“It is important to immediately bring medical services to the evacuation centers while stressing on the importance of proper command, coordination and communication among all the concerned parties,” Mr. Herbosa is quoted in a press release from the provincial government.

“Around P300,000 worth of logistics have already been mobilized in Albay, where the city of Legazpi and the municipalities of Daraga, Camalig, Guinobatan, Ligao, Malilipot, Tabaco, and Sto. Domingo will be given P20,000 each to be allocated for medical needs such as medicines, among others,” it said. — MSJ