PHILIPPINES: MAYON VOLCANO ERUPTION LATEST (3) скачать в хорошем качестве

PHILIPPINES: MAYON VOLCANO ERUPTION LATEST (3)

(29 Feb 2000) English/Nat The Mayon volcano in the Philippines erupted anew on Tuesday belching fountains of ash columns as high as 12 kilometres and sending red hot rocks bowling down its slopes. Towns continue to be choked with ash, with debris knocking out power supplies and forcing thousands more villagers to leave their homes. Experts say this appears to be the biggest eruption since the volcano began a series of eruptions last Thursday. A fountain of lava from the Mayon volcano's crater provided a spectacular light display. The volcano erupted anew on Tuesday, belching out red hot rocks and fountains of ash column as high as 12 kilometres into the atmosphere. Winds have driven ash as far as 14 kilometres (8.5 miles) southwest of the volcano. The eruptions also brought out pyroclastic flows - superheated clouds of volcanic ash that travel at up to 80 kilometres (50 miles) per hour and can instantly incinerate anything in their path. But despite the danger the eruptions bring, many enjoy the show of lights as the volcano continues to eject fountains of lava from its crater. Scientists at the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology have been monitoring the 8118-foot (2660 metres) volcano throughout. They say Tuesday's activity appears to be the most intense since the volcano began a series of eruptions last Thursday. SOUNDBITE: (English) "It's a volcanic eruption in the sense that you have a very explosive eruption now, and sending pyroclastic flows to the middle and breaking slopes." SUPER CAPTION: Raymundo Punongbayan, Director, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology Most homes around the volcano now stand deserted. As soon as the volcano showed signs of another eruption, people who were still within the eight-kilometre-radius danger zone were told to evacuate immediately. Their aim - to escape danger, and the smothering clouds of ash. In the town of Guinobatan, the ash forced more than 8,500 people to abandon their homes and coated roads and houses with up to two inches (5 centimetres) of brownish-grey. Visibility was reduced to half a block near the volcano and masks had to be worn by everyone still in the town. Although many have left, some, like this Singaporean tourist stayed to watch the fireworks. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Well its awesome. We hear the rumbling, we can hear sounds in the background, we can see the fire on the crater and see the clouds sort of going up from the crater." SUPER CAPTION: Paul Choo, Singaporean tourist More than 47,000 people have been evacuated from villages within the danger zone. Evacuation centers are packed with families still uncertain of what the eruptions may do to their own homes. And a power cut in Albay's provincial capital Legazpi has made an already difficult situation at the evacuation centres, even harder. Reports said that the power cut was caused by the massive ash fall that had clogged cables of the power system. The Mayon volcano had its most violent eruption on Feb. 1, 1814. Then, more than 1,200 people were killed and an entire town was buried in volcanic mud flows. Fortunately there have been no reports of casualties from the eruptions so far. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...