Taal Volcano logs more steam-driven eruptions
LUCEBA CITY—Volcano in Batangas province continues to record phreatic or steam-driven eruptions, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
The Phivolcs, in a post on its Facebook page at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, reported that the volcano recorded “short-lived phreatic events” in the Taal main crater at 10:31 a.m. on the same day.
“The events lasted more than four minutes and produced 600 meter-tall steam plumes that drifted west-northwest,” the state volcanologists said.
On Friday, the volcano also blew gas-laden steam indicating unrest but giving no sign yet of a more explosive eruption involving lava, the Phivolcs reported.
“A phreatic or steam-driven eruption at the Taal Main Crater occurred in the early morning between 5:11 a.m. to 5:24 a.m. based on seismic, visual and infrasound records of the Taal Volcano Network (TVN),” the Phivolcs said in its Friday advisory.
More phreatic eruptions could be expected, Phivolcs said.
Unlikely eruption
However, the agency assured the public that a magmatic eruption, where lava would spill from the volcano in Batangas province, would be unlikely.
In its bulletin on Saturday, the Phivolcs said the volcano recorded “five phreatic eruption events lasting one to 13 minutes long” over the past 24 hours.
The volcano also logged “15 volcanic earthquakes including six volcanic tremors” and lasted from two to four minutes long.
During the latest observation period, the volcano emitted 9,677 metric tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2) gas which rose to 2,400 m high before drifting southwest and northwest.
The Phivolcs classified the latest spewing activity of the volcano as “voluminous emission.”
Still, it was a significant drop from 18,638 MT of toxic gas logged on March 28 and March 29, tagged as “the highest flux recorded this year.”
It eclipsed the recorded 15,145 MT of toxic volcanic gas logged on Jan. 25 to Jan. 28.
However, the authorities still observed an “upwelling of hot volcanic fluids” in the main crater lake, located on Taal Volcano Island, locally known as “Pulo,” which sits in the middle of Taal Lake.
Taal Volcano remains under alert level 1 (low level of volcanic unrest), which means that phreatic eruptions, volcanic earthquakes, thin ashfall and hazardous gas emissions may occur, Phivolcs said.
The state volcanologists reminded the public that Taal Volcano continued to display an “abnormal condition” and “should not be interpreted to have ceased unrest nor ceased the threat of eruptive activity.”
