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As Australia is being devastated by uncontrollable bushfires, the Philippines was just hit by another natural disaster. Taal Volcano located on the big island of Luzon erupted January 12, 2020, reportedly sending ash and steam up to 6-9 miles into the sky. With the alert level of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) escalating from Alert Level 2 to Alert Level 4, it is now believed that "a hazardous explosive eruption is possible within hours to days."

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology ordered an evacuation in the towns of Balete, San Nicolas and Talisay in Batangas and other towns within the shores of Taal Lake. As people watched in awe and terror, some managed to snap pictures of the erupting volcano. The images show the smoke and ash rising from the mouth of Taal, reaching high up in the sky. Due to this, the Manila International Airport Authority was forced to suspend all flights to and from all terminals of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Unfortunately, numbers aren't stacked in the residents' favor as a more severe explosive eruption seems to be just moments away and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs issued a situation report stating that an estimated number of 459,300 people are within the 14 km danger zone.

#3

Taal Eruption

vdn_75 Report

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Monika Soffronow
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is a stunningly beautiful and fascinating photo, awe-inspiring and light-hearted at the same time. Well done!

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#7

Taal Eruption

happyandbusytravels Report

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Monika Soffronow
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ashes that are spewed high up into the stratosphere can affect the climate: https://eos.org/research-spotlights/volcanic-ash-contributes-to-climate-cooling

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#10

Taal Eruption

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John Kamau
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The pic seems taken from the skies... The aerosols can damage the plane's structural integrity, especially the engine, and potentially down it.

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#15

Taal Eruption

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Monika Soffronow
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A nope-cloud, just like the many similar-looking ones we have seen in photos of the horrendous bushfires in Australia.

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#16

Taal Eruption

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#20

Taal Eruption

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Kathy Baylis
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4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Looks like it blasted its dome off, though it’s probably just smoke and ash clouds.

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#21

Taal Eruption

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Andy Little
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"Here's a picture of one of the wildest things in nature - but mainly look at me"

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#23

Taal Eruption

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Pamela Blue
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And to think according to them, it is only just clearing its throat. It has yet to actually "blow". Scary thought.

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#28

Taal Eruption

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Kathy Baylis
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Another picture that looks like it blasted its dome off (like Mt St Helens—-look at before and after pics)

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#30

Taal Eruption

derrickquibael Report

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Huw Ellis
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

All these photos are awsome and amazing, I just pray that all the people nearby are safe.

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Note: this post originally had 54 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.