Philippine authorities on Sunday began to evacuate more than 12,000 people around Mount Mayon, one of the most active volcanoes in the Southeast Asian archipelago, as it began to erupt and spew an ash cloud in the area. Citing gave "health concerns" as a result of exposure to the rumbling volcano, Health Minister Teodoro Herbosa said that a mass evacuation campaign is now underway for people living in the danger zone. Mayon is one of some 24 active volcanoes in the Philippines and is being constantly monitored by Manila's Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. On Saturday, more than 6,000 villagers were forced to leave rural communities within a six-kilometer (3.7-mile) radius of the Mayon volcano's crater in northeastern Albay province in the Philippines. Officials said thousands more need to be moved to safety from the permanent danger zone amid another threat: monsoon rains that could be unleashed by an approaching typhoon. Authorities warned that Typhoon Guchol, which is approaching the Philippines from the Pacific but is projected to skirt the archipelago, may still dump heavy rains —unwelcome news for those living near Mayon's slopes. People living outside the perimeter have packed their bags and voluntarily left with their children for evacuation centers in Albay, which was placed under a state of calamity on Friday to allow the more rapid disbursement of emergency funds in case a major eruption unfolds. Authorities raised the alert level for the volcano on Thursday after superheated streams of gas, debris and rocks cascaded down its upper slope, indicating activity below the surface that could precede a hazardous eruption within days or weeks. A key tourist draw for its picturesque conical shape, the 2,462-meter (8,077-foot) Mayon is one of the country's most active volcanoes. It last erupted violently in 2018, displacing tens of thousands of villagers. Albay Governor Edcel Greco Lagman and Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian said they were prepared if monsoon rains were to trigger mudflows and rockfalls. "We will still make sure that we will have no casualties from any compounded calamities," Lagman said. The Philippines lies along the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an area around the ocean rim where tectonic plates meet, that is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. A long-dormant volcano, Mount Pinatubo blew its top north of Manila in 1991 in one of the biggest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century, killing hundreds of people. — Agencies
