It is believed that the Mayon volcano in the Philippines, which has been spewing lava and burning ash for a week, could erupt in a matter of days.
A six mile no-go zone has been established around the volcano’s base and thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes.
It has been reported that 85% of the population in the area are now living in emergency shelters.
According to the country’s chief volcanologist, Renato Solidum, there were more than 450 volcanic tremors detected on Saturday (over a 12-hour period) and that rumblings had been heard at the volcano’s base.
Solidum stated that “What we are preparing for is a hazardous eruption and a quick descent of pyroclastic ash flow,”
The volcano has erupted 48 times in recorded history, the most recent being 3 years ago. No one was killed in that eruption, but ash that settled on the mountain turned to mud during a typhoon three months later, resulting in a mudslide that killed around 1,000 villagers.
Apart from the potential volcanic eruption, earthquake activity in that area has been especially high of late. In fact, the whole of the Pacific “Ring of Fire” has seen a higher than usual number of earthquakes in the last few weeks.
An earlier prediction of a “massive” earthquake in California before the first week of December, failed to appear (thankfully), but the seismic activity currently seen suggests that the danger may still exist. Something big does seem to brewing, and the indications are that it will be within the “Ring of Fire,” but exactly where and when remains to be seen.
