MANILA – It has been more than two weeks since the Taal Volcano erupted that left thousands of people in Batangas displaced.
Many celebrities have already begun doing their part in reaching out to the evacuees, and now artists in the local music industry are getting together for a fundraising concert.
“Tulong Taal: A Musical Collaboration for Taal Rehabilitation” will be held at the Cuneta Astrodome on Saturday, February 1.
According to website PEP, the concert was a brainchild of veteran composer Vehnee Saturno, who likewise composed the song “Tulong Taal” after the calamity struck.
The song was interpreted by a group of singers including Ice Seguerra, Isay Alvarez, Kakai Bautista, Robert Seña, Frenchie Dy, The Company, Poppert Bernadas, Ebe Dancel, Jaya, Aicelle Santos, Bayang Barrios and Angeline Quinto.
“The music video aims to inspire ang mga kababayang Batangueño at mga Pilipino. We hope to generate fund from this which will also go to funds for Tulong Taal,” Alvarez told PEP.
All the singers involved are hoping that with their upcoming fundraising concert, help may be extended to more displaced families in Batangas.
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Amidst the glamour and celebrations at the 26th Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards in Los Angeles, California, some Hollywood celebrities’ and politicians’ voices took a somber note as they sent messages of support and solidarity to Filipinos affected by the Taal volcano eruption.
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The devastating volcanic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo happened nearly three decades ago. Government volcanologists warn an explosive eruption by Taal Volcano will be different. - The World Tonight, ANC, January 16, 2020
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MANILA – The Taal Volcano is still erupting but its activity has gone weaker than in previous days, according to the country's chief seismologist on Wednesday.
But how long the eruptions would last depends on the speed of the rise of magma.
Phivolcs executive director Renato Solidum said Wednesday they still record a lot of earthquakes at the Taal volcano and its general area, and many of these temblors have been felt.
"These can be interpreted as magma intruding from beneath the volcano causing fissures to move, causing earthquakes and also lifting off the ground. Hence, if these magma would continue to rise there can still be further activity related to the current situation," Solidum said on ANC's Headstart.
Solidum cannot exactly tell how long Taal's eruptions will be as he said the volcano has exhibited various styles of eruptions in the past, lasting from a few days to several months.
In 1911, Solidum said the eruption lasted for only 3 to 4 days. In 1965, it lasted for a month and in 1754, the eruption continued on for around 7 months.
"These would be dependent on the ascent of the magma, how fast it would move up or whether the magma would stop moving. As we try to analyze this we rely on 2 things: the earthquakes and deformation on the ground," he explained.
He said volcanoes have different styles and speeds of eruption and precursors. Taal’s behavior, he said, could go from having precursors and not erupting to having precursors and then erupting within several days to several weeks.
“When any volcano would erupt, it has to show signs of the activities escalating. However, that volcano did not accelerate its activity and in fact even half a day or a day before there were no significant earthquake events or even maybe 12 or 6 hours before, if you look at seismic record, there was no record,” he said.
The volcano’s activity accelerated in a span of around 6 hours, prompting Phivolcs to immediately raise its alert level.
In comparison, Mount Pinatubo, which erupted in 1991, recorded activity that signaled its destructive eruption on June 15 of that year.
There were quakes that March, phreatic eruptions a month later, steam emissions in May, and then a small ash emission prior to its major eruption.
“You can see clearly the big difference in the timing and sequence of the events versus what happened last Sunday,” he said.
Solidum said Phivolcs, the local government, and disaster management teams have been preparing for the possibility of Taal's hazardous eruption.
"The explosive eruption scenario, and this is the scenario we have been preparing for together with the Batangas Provincial Risk Reduction [and] Management Office, is still possible simply because of the fact that we still have a lot of earthquakes and ground deformation within the area," he said.
Sunday's activity initially started as a phreatic eruption. When the crater was depressurized, he said magma suddenly rose and produced more eruptions turning it into a phreatomagmatic eruption.
"The highest eruption column that we saw was around 10 to 15 kilometers last Sunday, late afternoon and evening, and for many volcanoes that would really be considered hazardous," he said.
Lava fountaining was observed by early Monday morning, resulting in a magmatic eruption.
While it was hazardous, Phivolcs said they have not yet seen pyroclastic density currents or the flow of rocks and ash down the slope of the volcano or even horizontally-moving out of the crater towards the lake.
"That is what we call a hazardous volcanic eruption when Taal would exhibit not only tall eruption columns, but horizontally-moving clouds more than 60 kilometers per hour that even reach the mainland and cross above the water," he said.
Thousands of residents were evacuated after the volcano spewed ash and destroyed homes, plants, and animals on Sunday.
"If the volcano would rapidly increase in activity then there will be additional evacuation and that has happened. Unfortunately the volcano changed its condition very rapidly," he said.
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MANILA – Only 30 out of the estimated 3,000 horses on Taal Volcano island have so far been rescued, an animal welfare group said Tuesday night.
In a Facebook post, the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) said the owners of the horses took action upon learning that "the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) will no longer evacuate the horses and that animal rescuers were not being allowed to go to the island."
"Wala namang maasahan so kami na lang (We were not expecting any rescue, so we did it ourselves)," one of them was quoted as saying by the animal welfare group.
According to PAWS, the owners of the stranded horses "took turns using three to four wooden boats and rowed over 50 kms" to transport them to Balete, Batangas.
"PAWS found the group after doing its feeding rounds for the affected dogs, cats and cattle in Talisay," added the group, which called for donations and financial assistance for the animals.
Meanwhile, three members of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) rescue team have been stranded on the volcano island since Wednesday morning.
"I think they were trying to rescue the animals pero naiwan po sila, kung sino man po iyong nagdala sa kanila doon (but they were left behind by the people who brought them there)," Anna Cabrera, executive director of PAWS, said in a radio interview.
Cabrera also urged the Philippine Coast Guard to save the three-man rescue team.
Veterinarians have been reminding the public to bring animals in areas affected by ashfall indoors as these can bring health risks such as eye damage and respiratory problems.
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MANILA – Personal safety should be the number one priority as Taal Volcano remains on the brink of a “hazardous eruption,” but it wouldn’t hurt to know how to properly care for a vehicle affected by ashfall.
On Monday, experts reminded car owners not to wipe their ash-covered vehicles as particles can damage the paint.
Toyota Motor Philippines instead suggested to wash cars with pressurized water to remove ash while preventing scratches.
It added that the air filters of vehicles driven in areas affected by the ashfall should be thoroughly cleaned.
Automotive shop Aegis Detailing Philippines, for its part, said a thick layer of wax will help protect a car that is not glass-coated.
Those who are unsure of what to do, meanwhile, are advised to bring their ash-coated vehicles to a professional to avoid further damage.
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MANILA -- Mercury Drug said Monday it was working with suppliers to replenish its stock of face masks after demand from those seeking to protect themselves from Taal Volcano ash fall depleted inventory.
Areas affected by the volcanic eruption will be prioritized when distributing face mask supply, the country's largest drug store chain said.
Mercury Drug said face mask prices would remain steady and it would not hoard supply.
Vice Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan earlier said she received reports that face masks had sold for P200 from P25 to P30 apiece before the eruption.
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Concepcion Industrial Corporation has advised consumers that they can use airconditioners (ACs) during light ash fall but not during heavy ash fall as it will destroy the appliance.
In a statement, the appliance manufacturer said split-type or window air conditioners can be used during light ash fall. It said the air the unit uses comes from inside the house, not from the outdoors, so it will not affect the appliance.
“However, during heavy ash fall, please refrain from using your AC units. Continued use during heavy ash fall will clog your AC unit's outdoor condenser coil, which will result to the overheating of the compressor,” the company said.
Consumers must also clean their units after the ash fall subsides.
Concepcion Industrial Corporation is the Philippine company behind aircon brands such as Kelvinator, Condura and Carrier.
According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), eruptive activity at Taal Volcano intensified as of 5:30 p.m. on Sunday.
It said hazardous explosive eruption was possible within hours to days
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