NDCC: 649 flee from restive Taal volcano

At least 649 people have evacuated their homes and sought shelter from restive Taal volcano in Batangas province. The National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said the evacuees received food assistance from the appropriate disaster management agencies. "A total of 137 families or 649 persons voluntarily evacuated. Evacuees came from the municipalities of San Nicolas and Balete," NDCC said in a June 16 update posted on its website Thursday evening.

It added the evacuees from San Nicolas town stayed at the San Nicolas Public Market while those from Balete stayed with relatives in Looc village. According to the NDCC, the town disaster coordinating councils provided food assistance to the evacuees. The alert level for Taal remained at "2," meaning the volcano is undergoing magmatic intrusion that can lead to an eruption. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, which raised the alert level to "2" last June 8, reminded the public Taal's main crater remains off-limits to the public due to steam-driven explosions that may suddenly occur, or high concentrations of toxic gases may accumulate. - KBK, GMANews.TV