LEGAZPI, Philippines — A gentle eruption of the Philippines’ most active volcano that has forced nearly 18,000 people to flee to emergency shelters could last for months and create a protracted crisis, officials said Wednesday.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. flew to northeastern Albay province to reassure villagers who were forced to evacuate from mostly poor farming communities within a 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) radius of the Mayon volcano’s crater since volcanic activity spiked last week.
Marcos distributed food packs and other aid to displaced villagers, and met Albay town mayors later Wednesday to discuss the unfolding crisis.
The eruption is the latest natural calamity to test the administration of Marcos, who took office in June 2022 in a Southeast Asian nation regarded as one of the most disaster-prone in the world. About 20 typhoons and storms a year lash the Philippines, and the poor archipelago with 23 active volcanoes wrestles with frequent earthquakes.
Marcos told displaced villagers at an evacuation center that it may take up to three months before the volcanic eruption eases and they could return home. Some displaced villagers have complained of the heat and overcrowding in emergency shelters and local officials pledged to provide more electric fans and improve their condition.
“We should be careful, we don’t want to commit a mistake. We don’t want people getting harmed if you return home then something happens,” Marcos told the displaced villagers. “We’re very careful so nothing will happen to all of you who live near Mayon volcano.”
The volcano’s activity was raised to alert level three on a five-step warning system on June 8, meaning a hazardous eruption was considered possible in weeks or days.