Due to increased volcanic activity, thousands were evacuated on Sunday from the capital city of -Manila, Philippines. The Taal volcano is located on an island around 65 kilometers from the capital. The crater showed an increase in the activity on Sunday which was observed by the the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.
The threat was increased from 1 to 3 on a scale of 5 when the volcano billowed a huge plume of smoke which reached a height of 1 kilometer according to reports published by Efe news.
Authorities in the metropolitan area have triggered the evacuation process in the municipalities of San Nicolas, Balete and Talisay, all of which are located near the volcano, Mark Timbal, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Counci, confirmed to Efe.
According to 2017 data, these three towns have populations ranging between 6,000 and 10,000 inhabitants.
Thousands of tourists visit Taal every year and many make hiking excursions up to its crater.
The volcano, which killed 1,300 people when it erupted in 1911 and 200 in 1965, is part of a volcanic chain stretching across the western region of Luzon island.
(With agency inputs)
