Persone in fuga

(EPA/DENNIS M. SABANGAN)

Filipino villagers aboard a military truck as they flee the six km danger zone of Mayon volcano in the village of Sua, Camalig town, Albay province in the Bicol region of the Philippines, 15 December 2009. After five successive minor ash explosions and 43 volcanic earthquakes recorded for the past 24 hours, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) on December 14 raised the alert level at Mayon Volcano from two to three. Albay Governor Joey Salceda also ordered the Joint Task Force Mayon to pre-positioned its vehicles for a possible evacuation of 30,000 residents.