Philippine President urges residents to evacuate after Mt Kanlaon eruption

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on December 13 urged residents affected by the eruption of Kanlaon Volcano in the central part of the country to comply with local government evacuation orders, as authorities scrambled to evacuate 84,000 people to safety.

In a video message, Marcos said more than 45,000 residents had been evacuated from the volcano’s 6-km radius danger zone, which is barely half of the target.

He said the Department of Social Welfare and Development is making sure of adequate living conditions at temporary shelters.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, and the Bureau of Fire Protection have also been placed on “high alert” in Negros Island.

According to Marcos, the country's volcanologists will continue to update information and provide clear and easy-to-understand recommendations to the public.

According to the daily monitoring report of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council of the Philippines, nearly 40,500 people were affected by the eruption of Kanlaon Volcano on December 9. Authorities raised the alert level to level 3 on a 5-level scale, warning of unstable geological activity./.

VNA