Residents living near an active volcano in the Albay province on the island of Luzon, have been evacuated following two explosions on Wednesday. Renato Solidum a Chief state volcanologist stated that although the alert level remains stable, eruption could occur within a matter of weeks if magma continues to rise below the crater.

Mayor Cicero Triunfante in Daraga township, on the southern slope of the mountain, has also ordered the early evacuation of more than 300 residents in the village of Matnog fearing that the village could be in the pathway of a lava flow if the volcano erupts. Cedric Daep Provincial disaster officer also stated that there may be mass evacuations once the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology increases the alert to the next level.

The mountain last erupted in 2006 when 30,000 people were evacuated. In 1993 an eruption killed 79 people. The most violent eruption occurred in 1814, when a town was buried deep in mud, killing 1,200 people. Earthquakes and volcanic activity are a common occurrence in The Philippines in what is known as the Pacific “Ring of Fire”,

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