CEBU CITY, Philippines —The P5 million financial assistance of the Capitol to the victims of the Taal Volcano eruption has been approved by the Cebu Provincial Board on Monday, February 3, 2020.
The PB passed in mass motion the resolution of Board Member John Ismael Borgonia (3rd district) giving Governor Gwendolyn Garcia the authority to release the cash assistance.
The Taal Volcano has started to emit ashes last Jan. 12 amid the celebrations of the Sinulog Festival in Cebu.
To date, the volcano continues to manifest activity despite its alert level having been downgraded to level 3 already.
“Activity in the Main Crater in the past 24 hours has been characterized by moderate to voluminous emission of dirty-white to white steam-laden plumes rising 800 meters high before drifting southwest,” reads the bulletin issued by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) at 8 a.m. today.
As of their Feb. 1 reading, Philvolcs said the sulfur dioxide emission of the volcano was measured at an average of 97 tonnes per day.
At Alert Level 3, “sudden steam-driven and even weak phreatomagmatic explosions, volcanic earthquakes, ash fall, and lethal volcanic gas expulsions can still occur and threaten areas within Taal Volcano Island and nearby lakeshores.”
“DOST-PHIVOLCS recommends that entry into the Taal Volcano Island as well as into areas over Taal Lake and communities west of the island within a seven (7) km radius from the Main Crater must be strictly prohibited,” the bulletin reads.
The continuing unrest of the volcano has displaced thousands of residents who live near the volcano.
The P5 million aid will be disbursed to the provincial government of Batangas.
Garcia earlier committed to send the aid to the province of Batangas to aid the recovery of the province which hosts the lake volcano.
Garcia said she is planning to ask Vice Governor Hilario Davide III or anyone of the Board Members to deliver the check to Batangas. /rcg