628 evacuees fall ill due to volcanic eruption in Philippines

Manila, June 19 (IANS) At least 628 people have fallen ill after being displaced due to the eruption of Mayon Volcano, the most active volcano in the Philippines, a government agency reported on Monday.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council recorded at least 10 kinds of sickness affecting the evacuees aged between 2 to 64, including coughs, colds, fever, gastroenteritis, acute respiratory infection, and skin disease, reports Xinhua news agency.

The disaster management agency said nearly 39,000 people have been affected by Mayon's eruption, which started on June 8.

Local authorities have evacuated over 20,000 villagers living in the danger zone around the picturesque, cone-shaped Mayon Volcano in Albay province, approximately 500 km southeast of the Philippine capital Manila.

The province, under a state of calamity, has set up 28 evacuation centres for displaced people, usually in school classrooms.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology on Monday recorded pyroclastic flows from the volcano's collapsed lava domes that lasted three minutes.

Steam-laden plumes rose to 600 meters, and the institute maintained the volcano's alert level at 3 on a scale of 5.

Mayon Volcano last erupted in 2018, resulting in the evacuation of more than 23,000 people from nine cities and municipalities.