Philippines orders evacuations as Mayon volcano erupts and blasts a 3,000-metre ash plume over nearby towns
Mayon Volcano erupting in Albay, Philippines, as posted on X by Weather Monitor, with residents within the 6km Permanent Danger Zone ordered to evacuate.
The six-minute eruption sent a dense grey ash column drifting west-southwest across Albay province, starting at 11:53 a.m. local time. Schools throughout the region were shut, and authorities warned that lava flows and fast-moving pyroclastic currents were imminent on the volcano's upper and middle slopes. PHIVOLCS announced that Mayon has entered a 'new phase of magmatic eruption', with conditions expected to deteriorate over the coming days and weeks. No casualties or structural damage were immediately reported.
Residents living within the six-kilometre Permanent Danger Zone around the crater have been ordered to evacuate, with authorities citing the dangers of pyroclastic flows, rockfalls and volcanic mudflows during heavy rain.
PHIVOLCS lifted the alert from Level 2 to Level 3 on its five-point scale — the same threshold it held for nearly seven months earlier this year before downgrading in August.
Aviation authorities have warned pilots to avoid the summit entirely, given the serious risk that ash clouds of that density pose to aircraft engines.
