About 11,594 people were affected by Taal Volcano’s phreatomagmatic bursts as Phivolcs lowered its alert level status, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Sunday.
The affected individuals, who also comprise more than 3,000 families, were from five towns in Batangas: Agoncillo, Balete, Cuenca, Laurel, and Talisay.
On Saturday, Phivolcs lowered the alert level status of Taal Volcano from level 3 to level 2 due to “decreased unrest.”
However, the agency clarified that the lowering of Taal to Alert Level 2 doesn’t mean that the volcano’s unrest has ceased or that the threat of an eruption has disappeared.
About 5,225 people, or 1,547 families, were also displaced by Taal’s unrest. Of the number, 5,201 were from Batangas, 19 were from Laguna, and 5 were from Cavite.
Residents near Taal Volcano seek safe grounds following unrest, officials said.
Most of these displaced residents are living with their relatives and friends as of Sunday, NDRRMC said.
Two barangays in Agoncillo town, Bilibinwang and Banyaga, also suspended classes due to the phreatomagmatic bursts, the council said.
Their classes are set to resume on Monday, April 11.
NDRRMC also reported more than P5.8 million worth of assistance has been provided by the families affected by Taal’s unrest.
Of the total aid, more than P3.8 million came from the Batangas provincial government, P1.6 million from the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Calabarzon, and another P302,000 came from the local governments of Tanauan City and Agoncillo.
The Department of Health in Calabarzon also provided additional health assistance worth P443,000, which was allotted to medicines, alcohol, maternity kits, and newborn kits, among others.
Phivolcs first placed Taal under Alert Level 3 on March 26, following a major phreatomagmatic burst recorded in the volcano.