
The second-most active volcano in the Philippines belched to life on Sunday when it sent a cloud of ash miles into the air that forced thousands to evacuate and shuttered the airport in the capital of Manila.
The eruption of the Taal volcano continued Monday when it began gushing lava, The Associated Press reported. People living nearby also felt tremors, and the country's volcanic institute warned of a potential "volcanic tsunami" in the lake that surrounds the volcanic island, according to The New York Times.
"The earthquakes were strong, and it felt like there was a monster coming out," Cookie Siscar, who heard about the eruption from her husband Emer, told The New York Times.
Streaks of lightning blazed through columns of ashes amid #TaalVolcano eruption as seen from Nasugbu, Batangas on S… https://t.co/88jBQNhGXo— ABS-CBN News (@ABS-CBN News)1578828801.0
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology raised the volcano's Alert Level to four out of five Sunday evening, indicating that a "hazardous eruption" is "imminent."
Taal volcano is located on an island around 40 miles south of Manila in the Philippines' Batangas province, according to The New York Times. Around 6,000 people live on the island itself, but people in the surrounding areas are also at risk. More than 13,000 people in Batangas and nearby Cavite province have been evacuated to shelters so far, according to The Associated Press. But authorities expect that number to balloon. More than 450,000 people are estimated to live within the volcano's danger zone, the Official United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.
Over 450,000 people are estimated to be residing within the 14 km danger zone of the Taal Volcano. On 12 January, a… https://t.co/rdy7nVDu9U— OCHA Philippines (@OCHA Philippines)1578880599.0
According to BBC News, Batangas province has already declared a "state of calamity."
So far, the major impact has been ash. The volcano sent ash, steam and pebbles six to nine miles into the air Sunday, The Associated Press reported. The ash spread more than 62 miles north of the volcano, reaching Manila, where it forced the international airport to close. More than 500 flights were canceled.
The airport was able to resume "partial operations" Monday morning, BBC News reported. But schools were closed, government work paused and the Philippines stock exchange canceled trading for the day.
In the villages, meanwhile, the ashfall threatened homes and livelihoods.
LOOK: Tagaytay Picnic Grove covered in mud and ashes after #TaalVolcano eruption | via @_katrinadomingo https://t.co/WFo4oXF6jE— ABS-CBN News (@ABS-CBN News)1578873519.0
"My father is missing," evacuee Irene de Claro, whose father stayed behind when the rest of the family fled a village in Batangas, told The Associated Press. "We don't know too what happened to our house because the ash was up to our knees, it was very dark and the ground was constantly shaking when we left. Most likely there's nothing for us to return to. We're back to zero."
Fear of losing farms or livestock means some people are refusing to evacuate.
"We have a problem, our people are panicking due to the volcano because they want to save their livelihood, their pigs and herds of cows," Mayor Wilson Maralit of Balete town told DZMM radio, as The Associated Press reported. "We're trying to stop them from returning and warning that the volcano can explode again anytime and hit them."
So far, there have been no deaths or injuries reported.
Taal volcano has erupted more than 30 times in 500 years, according to BBC News. The last time was in 1977.
Because it lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," the Philippines is often threatened by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. It also weathers around 20 typhoons or major storms every year, according to The Associated Press. The last was less than a month ago, when Typhoon Phanfone struck the predominantly Catholic country on Christmas Day.This Popular Condiment Is Helping Save Sea Turtles From One of Israel’s Worst Oil Spills
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From Greta Thunberg to Sir David Attenborough, the headline-grabbing climate change activists and environmentalists of today are predominantly white. But like many areas of society, those whose voices are heard most often are not necessarily representative of the whole.
1. Wangari Maathai
<p>In 2004, Professor Maathai made history as the <a href="https://www.nobelpeaceprize.org/Prize-winners/Prizewinner-documentation/Wangari-Maathai" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">first African woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize</a> for her dedication to sustainable development, democracy and peace. She started the <a href="http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Green Belt Movement</a>, a community-based tree planting initiative that aims to reduce poverty and encourage conservation, in 1977. More than 51 million trees have been planted helping build climate resilience and empower communities, especially women and girls. Her environmental work is celebrated every year on <a href="http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/node/955" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Wangari Maathai Day on 3 March</a>.</p>2. Robert Bullard
<p>Known as the 'father of environmental justice,' Dr Bullard has <a href="https://www.unep.org/championsofearth/laureates/2020/robert-bullard" target="_blank">campaigned against harmful waste</a> being dumped in predominantly Black neighborhoods in the southern states of the U.S. since the 1970s. His first book, Dumping in Dixie, highlighted the link between systemic racism and environmental oppression, showing how the descendants of slaves were exposed to higher-than-average levels of pollutants. In 1994, his work led to the signing of the <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/experts/albert-huang/20th-anniversary-president-clintons-executive-order-12898-environmental-justice" target="_blank">Executive Order on Environmental Justice</a>, which the <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/" target="_blank">Biden administration is building on</a>.<br></p><span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7983f54726debdd824f97f9ad3bdbb87"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/T_VjSGk8s18?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
Pollution has a race problem. Elizabethwarren.com
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<p>Helping the clean-up operation after an oil spill in San Francisco Bay in January 1971 inspired Francis to <a href="https://planetwalk.org/about-john/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">stop taking motorized transport</a>. Instead, for 22 years, he walked everywhere. He also took a vow of silence that lasted 17 years, so he could listen to others. He has walked the width of the U.S. and sailed and walked through South America, earning the nickname "Planetwalker," and raising awareness of how interconnected people are with the environment.</p><span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="09b968e0e9964e31406954dcea45981d"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vgQjL23_FoU?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
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<p>A meteorology and climate pioneer, Dr. Washington was one of the first people to develop atmospheric computer models in the 1960s, which have helped scientists understand climate change. These models now also incorporate the oceans and sea ice, surface water and vegetation. In 2007, the <a href="https://www.cgd.ucar.edu/pcm/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Parallel Climate Model (PCM)</a> and <a href="https://www.cesm.ucar.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Community Earth System Model (CESM)</a>, earned Dr. Washington and his colleagues the <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2007/summary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nobel Peace Prize</a>, as part of the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a>.</p><span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="09fbf6dc37f275f438a0d53ec0fe1874"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bvJ4jTy2mTk?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
5. Angelou Ezeilo
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