A Volcano in Philippines Sparks

by nate on Friday, December 18th, 2009 | Health, News, World

Fire on the Mountain

Mayon volcano, roughly 300 miles south of Manila, is located in a lush, coconut growing region of the central Philippines. Mayon has erupted 49 times since its first event was documented in 1616. In 1814, more than 1,200 people were killed in the volcano’s deadliest eruption. Seventy-eight earthquakes and tremors were recorded the night of Dec. 16, and tens of thousands of people have already fled from the area. Mayon’s last major eruption was in 1993.

High Alert
Filipino soldiers patrol Mabinit village, part of the eight-kilometer danger zone, as lava cascades down the slopes of Mayon on Dec. 17. Though tens of thousands of residents have already left their homes, authorities have started to evacuate up to 50,000 from the area as scientists say a large-scale eruption is imminent. Some of the evacuees sleep on the floor and using schools as shelters.