“We have advised our Batangas PDCC (Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council) to issue a memorandum to all concerned municipalities regarding the alert level 2,” said RDCC director Vicente Tomazar by phone.
The nine towns in Batangas province include Agoncillo, San Nicolas, Santa Teresita, Laurel, Lemery, Talisay, Tanauan city, Balite and Mataas na Kahoy.
Officials of the tourist city of Tagaytay in Cavite, from which Taal Volcano is also viewed, were also alerted to prohibit its tourists from descending to the crater and in the Daang Kastila Trail, which is considered to be a danger zone.
Tomazar said if the alert level status hits level 3 under continuous monitoring, that is the time the authorities would activate its contingency plan and enforce the evacuation of residents.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology on Tuesday raised the alert level status of Taal Volcano from 1 to 2 after signs of possible eruption had been monitored since Monday, Tomazar said.
“Taal Volcano had already been on alert level 1 status since November 23, 2005. The changes in the activities of the Taal Volcano are usually sudden, unlike with the Mayon Volcano (in Legazpi, Albay) where (eruption signs) build up,” he said.
RDCC monitored 33 eruptions of the Taal Volcano. Its last eruption was on October 3, 1977 but the most violent happened on September 28-30, 1965.
Source: Inquirer