The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) said that Kanlaon Volcano could escalate back to Alert Level 3 or, if activity eases, drop to Level 1, nearly three months after authorities lowered it to Level 2, but recent activity signals continued volcanic unrest.
Phivolcs Director Teresito Bacolcol told reporters on Monday, October 27, the agency may raise the alert to level 3 if monitoring parameters worsen and lower it to Level 1 if they improve.
On Friday night, Kanlaon produced its fifth explosive eruption since June 3, 2024, blanketing 18 barangays across eight municipalities with ash and a sulfuric odor.
The state volcanologist said that the current volcanic activity still shows moderate volcanic unrest, marked by elevated volcanic earthquakes, steam and gas emissions, ground deformation, intermittent ash explosions, and above-baseline sulfur dioxide emissions.
The agency interprets these signs as “probable magma intrusion at depth,” which could trigger a magmatic eruption.
Bacolcol stressed that the 4-kilometer permanent danger zone (PDZ) is still off-limits to all civilians.
The volcano followed up with three additional ash releases on Saturday, and Phivolcs recorded a four-minute summit crater emission on October 27.
Since June 2024, the volcano has emitted 18 ash clouds, including three on October 25.
Bacolcol described the activity as “consistent with increasing unrest” and warned eruptions could occur even if authorities drop the alert level to zero.
The eruptions displaced nearly 80 families (284 people) from the 4-kilometer zone, who remain in six evacuation centers. Past eruptions include December 9, 2024, and February 6 and May 13, 2025.
Meanwhile, Bacolcol praised local governments as “well prepared” for potential escalation, citing their 2024 experience managing Alert Level 3.*
Reymund Titong is a Filipino journalist steadily building his voice in the field of news reporting, driven by a commitment to tell meaningful and relevant stories.
He serves as a correspondent for Rappler, maintains a personal blog on Medium, and is the communications officer of Hope Builders Organization Negros Island.