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