philippine volcano fireworks draw
Last Updated : GMT 09:07:40
Egypt Today, egypt today
Egypt Today, egypt today
Last Updated : GMT 09:07:40
Egypt Today, egypt today

Tourists as residents flee

Philippine volcano 'fireworks' draw

Egypt Today, egypt today

Egypt Today, egypt today Philippine volcano 'fireworks' draw

Lava spurting from Mayon volcano lit up the sky overnight Monday
Legazpi - Egypt Today

Spectacular lava "fireworks" shooting from its crater are drawing tourists to the Philippines' most active volcano, authorities said Tuesday as scientists warned of a potential dangerous eruption within days.

Lava spurting from Mayon volcano lit up the sky overnight Monday in what scientists said was a sign of increasing activity that prompted official calls for evacuation of areas under threat from a major eruption.

But even as thousands of residents flee, tourists are flocking to the area, some 330 kilometres (205 miles) southeast of Manila to watch and photograph the spectacle, Danny Garcia, a spokesman for Albay province told AFP.

"It's a spectacle to watch. It's beauty and fury in one, especially at night. But it's a natural phenomenon so we don't know when an (explosive) eruption will happen," Garcia added.

Mayon, a near-perfect cone that also draws thousands of tourists during its periods of quiet, rises 2,460 metres (8,070 feet) above Legazpi, a city of about 200,000 people surrounded by a largely agricultural region.

The state volcanology institute described the natural pyrotechnics as "short-duration lava fountaining", an escalation from the slow lava flow from the crater a day earlier.

"If lava has enough gas and material, fragments will be flown up into the air, like the fountain you light up on New Year's Eve," Renato Solidum, head of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), told AFP.

"There is more force involved when the lava would exit so it's more intense than just the lava oozing out."

Ash also rose two kilometres into the sky in the past 24 hours, enveloping surrounding areas in a grey carpet as more residents left their homes for safety.

About 30,000 people in and around Legazpi have fled their homes, the provincial government said on Tuesday, more than double the official count on Monday.

Local governments are tapping emergency funds and working to ensure clean water supply, officials said.

However hotels reported getting more tourist bookings while people flocked to viewing decks to watch the volcano from a distance, the provincial government said although it gave no specific figures.

The Philippines is part of the Pacific "Ring of Fire" of islands that were formed by volcanic activity, and is perennially under threat from 22 active volcanoes.

The most powerful explosion in recent years was the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo, about 100 kilometres northwest of Manila, which killed more than 800 people.

Scientists said it was highly unlikely Mayon would have a similar eruption.

"It erupts quite often, and volcanoes that erupt frequently tend to have smaller eruptions than those that erupt less frequently," David Rothery, a geosciences professor at The Open University in Britain, told AFP.

Source:AFP

egypttoday
egypttoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

philippine volcano fireworks draw philippine volcano fireworks draw



GMT 00:19 2012 Sunday ,19 February

Sky extends rugby league contract

GMT 12:34 2012 Tuesday ,07 February

New Kurdish satellite TV station goes on air

GMT 06:29 2014 Sunday ,31 August

Finally, Apple’s iWatch coming in September

GMT 04:51 2017 Thursday ,13 April

Huda Kattan among top 10 beauty influencers

GMT 08:47 2011 Monday ,25 July

Uncle Sam wants psychiatrists

GMT 09:51 2019 Monday ,19 August

Live a frustrating atmosphere in your career

GMT 19:15 2012 Monday ,20 February

Sound of music for Sky News Arabia

GMT 23:28 2012 Saturday ,25 February

Al Jazeera crowned RTS news channel of the year

GMT 09:09 2012 Friday ,13 July

Supreme Court warns Pak prime minister

GMT 19:14 2017 Monday ,06 February

Earthquake Hits Areas in Iran's Khuzestan

GMT 04:45 2017 Monday ,06 February

Chazelle wins top DGA prize for ‘La La Land’

GMT 08:18 2016 Wednesday ,03 February

Syria's war-pummelled textile industry

GMT 21:09 2016 Wednesday ,01 June

Suspected US troops attack Al Shabaab in Somalia

GMT 18:03 2015 Monday ,09 February

GCC assistant secretary-general meets Swiss official

GMT 09:27 2017 Saturday ,30 December

Cyprus president among nine candidates

GMT 02:02 2012 Friday ,10 August

Potato juice treat stomach ulcers

GMT 12:43 2013 Monday ,03 June

Mays Hamdan works on new song

GMT 06:11 2015 Thursday ,22 October

Comedian Chris Rock to host Oscars again

GMT 12:10 2012 Wednesday ,26 September

Marwa\'s plans after finishing film Christmas

GMT 06:23 2012 Friday ,13 April

Happy Feet Two

GMT 13:24 2012 Tuesday ,24 July

LeAnn Rimes in see-through top
 
 Egypt Today Facebook,egypt today facebook  Egypt Today Twitter,egypt today twitter Egypt Today Rss,egypt today rss  Egypt Today Youtube,egypt today youtube  Egypt Today Youtube,egypt today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

egypttoday egypttoday egypttoday egypttoday
egypttoday egypttoday egypttoday
egypttoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
egypttoday, Egypttoday, Egypttoday