File photo shows Mount Bulusan exploding with a massive volcanic ash cloud, near Gulang Gulang. The volcano erupted in the eastern Philippines on Tuesday, raining ash on two towns, but there were no reports of casualties, volcanologists said.(AFP/File/Francis Malasig)

July 31, 2007

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Keywords: Philippines, Volcanos

MANILA - A volcano erupted in the eastern Philippines on Tuesday, raining ash on two towns, but there were no reports of casualties, volcanologists said.

No immediate evacuation of nearby communities was necessary unless the apparently short-term eruption of Bulusan volcano worsens, Julio Sabit of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology told AFP.

Located on the southeastern tip of the main island of Luzon, the 1,559-meter (5,145-foot) Bulusan erupted at about 9:30 am (0130 GMT) with a burst of ash that shot up six kilometers (3.7 miles) above the crater, Sabit said.

The column drifted west toward the towns of Juban and Irosin. Government volcanologists were going to the site to evaluate the scale of the volcanic activity, he added.

"The eruption is nearly over although there could be more to follow based on previous activity," Sabit said. "People's lives are not in danger as of the moment and no evacuations have been ordered."

However, if the eruption persists several villages near the lower slopes could be under threat from volcanic ash carried down by rivers and streams, he added.

Bulusan is one of the Philippines' 22 active volcanoes. It is known to have erupted 16 time previously, the last one in early 2006.

Human settlements are banned within four kilometers (2.5 miles) of the crater.

Keywords: Philippines, Volcanos

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