Panayam kay Phivolcs Director Teresito Bacolcol tungkol sa haze na nararanasan sa Metro Manila, na hindi nagmula sa smog ng Taal Volcano

PTVPhilippines

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00:00Updates on the Taal Volcano and the haze that we are experiencing in Metro Manila

00:05with Fivox Director Dr. Teresito Bacolcol.

00:09Dr. Bacolcol, good afternoon.

00:12Yes, good afternoon to you too, sir.

00:15Doc, what is the latest update on the smog that is coming out of the Taal Volcano?

00:21Is it expected to continue?

00:25Well, earlier, the Taal Volcano still had degassing or steaming activity

00:29that reached 2,100 meters.

00:32But this stopped around 10 a.m.

00:36After the 2020 eruption,

00:38sulfur dioxide still continued to flow into the Taal Volcano.

00:43Now, for as long as the Taal Volcano is spewing out sulfur dioxide,

00:47the haze is always present.

00:52Sir, in your monitoring,

00:54what is the direction of the wind now, where is the smog coming from?

00:58What places are affected by this?

01:01And since there are places where their classes have been suspended.

01:07So earlier, towards around 11 o'clock,

01:10towards the southwest is the wind.

01:12So in the last wave,

01:14there is still fog in some towns in Batangas,

01:17although it is not as wide as it was yesterday.

01:21The towns that have presence of fog are the towns of Laurel,

01:26San Nicolas, Agoncillo, Talisay,

01:30Bayanang Balete, Lemery,

01:32Cuenca, Malvar, Lipa City, Taal, Lian, and Nasugbu.

01:39Doc, is there a risk of volcanic eruption when sulfur dioxide comes out of a volcano?

01:44And if not, what is the reason for this?

01:49The release of sulfur dioxide is just one of the parameters that we are looking at

01:54so that we can say that there is a risk of volcanic eruption of a volcano.

01:59It is normal for volcanoes to release sulfur dioxide.

02:03This gas comes from a magma moving up through the volcano.

02:07So it's a common part of volcanic activity.

02:10Sir, in your data,

02:14are you able to record volcanic earthquakes from here in Balkang Taal?

02:22And how common is it now?

02:26For the past 24 hours, we have not recorded a volcanic earthquake in Taal Volcano.

02:31In fact, we have not recorded a volcanic earthquake in Taal Volcano for the past 12 days,

02:37since August 8.

02:39So this is a good sign

02:42since the presence of volcanic earthquakes is causing magma to rise and crush the rocks.

02:49So if there is no volcanic earthquake, it means that there is no magma rising.

02:54Doc, at the moment, Taal Volcano is at alert level 1.

02:57Is there a chance or what are the chances that this volcano will erupt again?

03:03If you're talking about a phreatic eruption,

03:06the threat, the chances of phreatic eruption is always there.

03:10That's why we prohibit our countrymen from going to Taal Volcano Island.

03:15Now, for an eruption of the same magnitude as the 2020 eruption,

03:20based on the data that we have as we speak,

03:24that there are no volcanic earthquakes for 12 days,

03:27there is long-term deflation,

03:29the chances of a large eruption on the scale of the 2020 eruption,

03:34although still possible, is remote for now.

03:38But this does not mean that we will be complacent.

03:41We should always be vigilant.

03:43And if there is a change in our monitored parameters,

03:47we will immediately bring this to our countrymen.

03:52Sir, just to be clear,

03:54what is the haze that is observed here in Metro Manila?

03:58What is our explanation here?

04:02The haze that we observed in Metro Manila yesterday

04:05is most likely due to local pollutants rather than a fog.

04:10The slow wind gusts for the past few days

04:15prevented the local pollutants from dispersing vertically.

04:20That's why they remain on the lower levels

04:23and created the haze that we saw yesterday.

04:27Doc, maybe a message or a reminder to our countrymen?

04:33Guys, if they observed a fog,

04:36especially those who live around Taal Volcano,

04:39we urge them to avoid outdoor activities.

04:42They stay inside their houses,

04:44and close the doors and windows.

04:47If they cannot avoid going out,

04:49they protect themselves by wearing a face mask,

04:52if possible, N95.

04:54And if they are exposed to a haze,

04:56drink plenty of water to dilute the haze.

04:59And if it is really bad, especially if there are health conditions,

05:02they need to see a medical doctor.

05:05Okay, thank you very much, Oras,

05:07Phivox Director, Dr. Teresito Bacolcol.

05:10Thank you very much.

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