Via ABS-CBN News: Ash blanket stalls travel, markets as thousands flee rumbling Taal. Click or tap through for a video.
TAGAYTAY CITY -- (UPDATE) Gray ash from Taal Volcano blanketed large parts of Southern Luzon and Metro Manila on Monday, shutting the country's main airport overnight, prompting a health advisory, and forcing thousands to flee as authorities kept vigil for a possible hazardous eruption.
The Ninoy Aquino International Airport reopened for departures at 10 a.m. and arrivals at 12 p.m., aviation authorities said as they managed a throng of passengers at the terminal.
Relief workers trudged through ash-covered roads with their headlights on at dawn in Agoncillo, Batangas. In the capital, people lined up for face masks, some at 8 times the retail price as they cleaned ash-covered cars and roofs.
Taal spewed lava on Monday, a day after it blew ash and steam into the air. Alert Level 4, the second-highest in a 5-step scale, was raised, meaning a "hazardous" eruption was possible in days.
"Napakabilis ng pagbabago ng kanyang kundisyon (The condition is changing very rapidly)," said Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum.
In a "worst case scenario," Solidum told DZMM that magma could come out of the volcano as it shoots ash and rocks into the air.
Located in the middle of a picturesque lake that straddles the tourist city of Tagaytay and a heritage town of the same name, Taal's last eruption was in 1977, Solidum earlier said.
Inhaling ash could lead to cough and difficulty and breathing. It could also irritate the eyes, the Department of Health said. The public was also warned about the possibility of roofs caving in due to accumulated ash.
