Posted on 01/13/2020 9:44:19 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Philippine authorities have urged a "total evacuation" of nearly half a million people near the capital Manila, after a volcano spewed ash up to nine miles (14 kilometers) into the air Sunday prompting warnings of a possible "explosive eruption."
The Taal Volcano, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) south of the capital Manila on the island of Luzon, is one of the country's most active. Images from the scene on Monday showed streams of lava beginning to gush out the volcanic vent, the sky above still thick and dark with ash and steam.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) has raised the alert level to four, meaning an "explosive eruption" could happen in the coming hours or days. Its highest alert level is five, indicating an eruption is taking place.
People watch plumes of smoke and ash rise from Taal Volcano on January 12, 2020, in Tagaytay outside Manila, Philippines. In explosive eruptions, magma is fragmented and violently expelled from the volcano -- think of a soda can after being shaken -- as opposed to thick lava oozing out.
Taal Volcano isn't actually very big -- but it's considered among the world's most dangerous, owing to the number of people that live in its immediate vicinity, said Erik Klemetti, a volcanologist at Denison University.
PHIVOLCS has requested a "total evacuation" of everyone within a 17-kilometer (10.5 miles) radius around the volcano. This area, considered a volcanic danger zone, is home to more than 450,000 residents, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Imagine the havoc this is going to play for the call centers for eBay, ATT, and the Credit Card companies....
That may well be the best nature photo I’ve ever seen.
Yikes
Yeah really
Will Trump send USN et al to evacuate some of the Filipinos?
I have a friend who practices in Makati . . . he commutes to the USA often. I need to check his status
Taal is one of the more amazing sites I have visited. Lots of cones in the caldera. Lots of homes in the caldera. There is an island in a lake that is in an island in a lake inside an island.
Where are you in relation to this?
Can you see the ash cloud from where you are?
Pure paint destroying ash. Even cleaning it off with water scratches the paint and will destroy the finish and allow rust.
That’ll buff right out.
That picture has got to be in the running for pix of the year.
Bro, you good?
Between typhoons and volcanoes, the Philippines gets more than its fair share of natures destructive forces.
I was in Subic for the volcaphoonquake of ‘92 when Pinatubo erupted.
We washed ash off the deck with firehoses for nearly 3 days straight and then started transporting military and dependents down to Cebu for another 2 weeks or so.
Never forget watching (want to say it was) Iwo Jima (LHD) start listing because they didn’t start removing ash immediately. Then they started using the aircraft movers to bulldoze it as I recall.
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