MANILA – Taal Volcano generated a short phreatomagmatic burst on Wednesday morning, producing grayish plumes that rose above the main crater.
In a Facebook post, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported that the event occurred from 6:51 a.m. to 6:54 a.m.
The plumes, which reached up to 2,800 meters high, drifted northeast, as captured by its Lower Calauit and Napayong monitoring cameras.
Phivolcs defines phreatomagmatic eruption as the interaction of magma with water, generating steam, ash, and fragmented volcanic material.
This is different from a phreatic eruption, which occurs when water comes into contact with hot rocks or gases, resulting in steam plumes without direct involvement of magma.
Taal’s last phreatomagmatic activity occurred when three phreatomagmatic bursts and one phreatic event were recorded at the northeastern portion of the main crater between the afternoon of Oct. 25 and the early morning of Oct. 26.
It remains under Alert Level 1, which indicates an abnormal condition but no imminent eruption.
Despite this, Phivolcs warned that sudden steam-driven or phreatic explosions, volcanic earthquakes, minor ashfall, and lethal gas accumulations may still occur in the Main Crater area.
Entry to the Taal Volcano Island, particularly the Main Crater and Daang Kastila fissure, is prohibited due to possible hazardous events. Flying close to the volcano is also prohibited.
Communities surrounding the lake are advised to stay alert and heed updates from authorities. (PNA)