• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology reported light ashfall in four barangays of La Castellana and La Carlota City in Negros Occidental, as it has logged multiple ash eruptions since April 1.
In an advisory issued on Friday, PHIVOLCS logged five ash emission events which lasted from 17 minutes to 102 minutes generating plumes as high as 600 meters, with 22 volcanic quakes, including six volcanic tremors.
Kanlaon Volcano remains at Alert Level 3, or high level of volcanic unrest.
Ptolemy Mañego, science research assistant at the PHIVOLCS Kanlaon Observatory in La Carlota City, raised the possibility that there could be another eruption of the volcano.
Light ashfall was reported in the barangays of Yubo and Araal in La Carlota City, as well as Cabagnaan and Sag-ang in La Castellana, while sulfuric odor was noted at the upper slopes of Kanlaon Volcano, according to Mañego.
The multiple ash emissions may have been due to plugging and unplugging of the volcanic conduit, he added.
According to data from the Office of Civil Defense, a total of 5,657 evacuees still remain in evacuation centers in Negros Occidental. Among those, 4,264 are in La Castellana, 77 in Bago City, 1,111 in La Carlota City, and 205 in San Carlos City.
The OCD is eyeing the establishment of permanent evacuation centers in several barangays in southern Negros Occidental.
Donato Sermeno III, regional director of the OCD in Negros Island Region, said that they have identified three local government units where the permanent evacuation centers will be located. These are Barangay Calumangan in Bago City, Brgys. La Granja and San Miguel in La Carlota City, and Brgys Talaptap, Lalagsan, Manghanoy, Robles, and Nato in La Castellana.
Sermeno also said that they will coordinate with the concerned LGUs before submitting their recommendations to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) for approval.*
