Ash covers towns after Philippines volcano eruption
India Today
A volcano erupted in the eastern Philippines, forcing residents to flee ash-covered towns.
A volcano in the eastern Philippines spewed a huge, dark cloud on Sunday, prompting evacuations from ash-covered towns while authorities warned of possible further eruptions.
The blast from Bulusan volcano in the rural Sorsogon province lasted about 17 minutes, sending a grey plume shooting up at least one kilometre (0.6 miles), according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PhiVolcs).
No casualties were reported, but authorities raised the alert level to one on the five-level system, indicating "low-level unrest".
"There was a phreatic eruption of the Bulusan volcano, meaning the explosion was caused by the boiling water under the crater," PhiVolcs head Renato Solidum told local radio DZBB.
A group of 14 hikers and four local guides were midway down the 1,565-metre tall mountain, unaware that an ash cloud was shooting up on the other side of the mountain, civil defence official Leo Ferreras of nearby Barcelona town told AFP by phone.
"All of them got down safe and sound," he added.
The local government of Sorsogon, about 500 kilometres (310 miles) south of the capital Manila, said 10 villages in two towns were affected by the ashfall.