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Report on Bulusan (Philippines) — April 2006


Bulusan

Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 31, no. 4 (April 2006)
Managing Editor: Richard Wunderman.

Bulusan (Philippines) Eruptions and earthquakes in March and April 2006 after years of little activity

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2006. Report on Bulusan (Philippines) (Wunderman, R., ed.). Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, 31:4. Smithsonian Institution. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.GVP.BGVN200604-273010



Bulusan

Philippines

12.769°N, 124.056°E; summit elev. 1535 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


Bulusan, after remaining relatively quiet since 1995, erupted multiple times during March and April 2006. There were no casualties or damage from these eruptions. On 21 March at 1044 the summit crater erupted, sending a column of ash 1.5 km into the sky accompanied by lightning and rumbling noises. Ash drifted N, W, and SW of the volcano and an hour after the event light ash fell on neighborhoods such as Barangays Cogon, Tinampo, Gulang-Gulang, and Bolos in the town of Irosin, as well as Barangays Puting Sapa and Bura-Buran in the town of Juban.

Ash ejected at 1058 on 22 March coincided with an explosion-type earthquake. Three other earthquakes were recorded at 2330, 2332, and 2337. The hazard status had been raised to Alert Level 1; the area within a 4 km radius of the summit is a Permanent Danger Zone.

On 29 April the volcano erupted in a similar fashion, emitting ash nearly 1.6 km into the air. There was no sign of lava and no reports of rumbling noises. It was reported that ash rained on nearby communities.

Geological Summary. Luzon's southernmost volcano, Bulusan, was constructed along the rim of the 11-km-diameter dacitic-to-rhyolitic Irosin caldera, which was formed about 36,000 years ago. It lies at the SE end of the Bicol volcanic arc occupying the peninsula of the same name that forms the elongated SE tip of Luzon. A broad, flat moat is located below the topographically prominent SW rim of Irosin caldera; the NE rim is buried by the andesitic complex. Bulusan is flanked by several other large intracaldera lava domes and cones, including the prominent Mount Jormajan lava dome on the SW flank and Sharp Peak to the NE. The summit is unvegetated and contains a 300-m-wide, 50-m-deep crater. Three small craters are located on the SE flank. Many moderate explosive eruptions have been recorded since the mid-19th century.

Information Contacts: R.U. Solidum and E. Corpuz, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), Department of Science and Technology, PHIVOLCS Building, C.P. Garcia Avenue, Univ. of the Philippines Campus, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines (URL: http://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/); Inq7.net, a venture between The Philippine Daily Inquirer Inc., and GMANetwork Inc. (URL: http://news.inq7.net/).