Mt. Bulusan erupted at around 11:35am on Fri, Jun 10. The eruption is expected to affect several villages in Casiguran, Sorsogon, specifically the western part of the province.

“The phreatic explosion (also called a steam-blast eruption, which happens when magma heats ground or surface water) was confirmed by Raffy Alejandro, director of the Office of Civil Defense in the Bicol Region. It lasted for five minutes,” reports ABS-CBN News.

As indicated in the eruption notification released by Phivolcs’ Volcano Monitoring and Eruption Prediction Division (VMEPD), Mt. Bulusan spewed an ash plume that went up to a height of around 2,000 meters.

Prior to this, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) recorded at least 113 volcanic earthquakes around Mt. Bulusan in the past 24 hours.

“The local government units and the public are reminded that entry into the four-kilometer radius Permanent Danger Zone (PDZ) is strictly prohibited due to the possibility of sudden and hazardous steam-driven or phreatic eruptions,” the advisory noted.