Thousands spend Christmas in shelters as Kanlaon remains restive

ALL LIGHTED UP Residents of La Castellana, Negros Occidental welcome the Christmas lighting event at their town center on Monday night, which proceeded despite the continued threat posed by the restive Mt. Kanlaon. —RONNIE BALDONADO

BACOLOD CITY—Over 15,000 Negrenses have to spend Christmas and possibly the rest of the holidays in evacuation centers as Mt. Kanlaon continued to be restive since it erupted on Dec. 9.

On Tuesday, the volcano emitted voluminous ash from 11:37 a.m. to 11:48 a.m., rising 1,200 meters tall, and followed by smaller emissions, said Mari Andylene Quintia, resident volcanologist of the Kanlaon Volcano Observatory in La Carlota City.

The wind direction was headed southwest, which means ash could fall on La Castellana or La Carlota City, she said.

It was the second day in a row that the volcano had been emitting voluminous ash.

However, Mt. Kanlaon would remain at alert level 3 (intensified unrest/magmatic unrest) because there was no abrupt increase in Kanlaon’s trend, movement was gradual, Quintia said.

Ashfall was not reported in nearby communities on Monday despite voluminous emissions, which means it could have fallen on the upper slopes of the volcano, she added.

There were also four ash emissions, 25 volcanic earthquakes, 2,200 tons of sulfur dioxide emitted from 12 a.m Monday to 12 a.m. Tuesday at Kanlaon.

With the volcano still under alert level 3, residents within the 6-kilometer danger zone of the volcano would have to remain in shelters set up in Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental localities that surround Mt. Kanlaon.

Negros Occidental has 8,412 evacuees from 2,673 families placed in 22 evacuation centers in Bago City, La Carlota City and La Castellana) while Canlaon City in Negros Oriental has 2,212 families composed of 7,183 individuals who were evacuated, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said on Sunday.

There were also 1,542 families with 4,939 members who sought temporary shelter in the homes of friends and relatives, the DSWD said.

Christmas cheers

But those in La Castellana, the area worst hit by Kanlaon’s eruption, did not allow the disruptions to dampen their spirits, opting to proceed with the lighting of the Christmas lights at the town’s public plaza on Monday night.

Hundreds of smiling residents, including some evacuees, witnessed the switching on of the Christmas lights.

They decided to put on the Christmas lights despite budgetary constraints to lift the spirits of the town’s residents and to bring them joy amid the calamity they are facing, said Rhummyla Nicor-Mangilimutan.

Government and private sector groups are set to bring Christmas parties to the evacuation centers on Wednesday.

Last week, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said it may expand the permanent danger zone surrounding Mt. Kanlaon from 6 km to 10 km if the rainy weather worsens.

An expansion would mean thousands more evacuees amid concerns raised by affected local governments about the mounting cost of caring for the current evacuees.

Raul Fernandez, the OCD Western Visayas director and Task Force Kanlaon chair, said they were still consulting with all relevant agencies to determine if there was a need to expand the danger zone.

“Preparatory work for an expanded evacuation is under way to ensure that we are ready for the worst case scenario. It is just advance planning so if mass evacuation from the 10 kilometer danger zone is needed, it can immediately be executed,” he said.