Thirty-four barangays in six local government units in Negros Island are at risk of pyroclastic flows should Kanlaon Volcano erupt, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said in an advisory.

The villages — located in the cities of Bago and La Carlota, as well as the towns of La Castellana, Pontevedra and Moises Padilla in Negros Occidental; and Negros Oriental’s Canlaon City — are within the pyroclastic flow hazard zone, the advisory said.

In La Castellana, those in the hazard zone are Barangays Sag-ang, Camandag, Mansalanao, Manghanoy, Cabacungan, Puso, Biak na Bato, Masulog, Cabagnaan, and Robles.

In Bago City, these are Barangays Ilijan, Binubuhan, Mailum, and Ma-ao, while in Pontevedra, the barangays are Buenavista Rizal and Zamora.

In Moises Padilla, these are Barangays Magallon Cadre, Odiong, Guinpana-an, Montilla, Quentin Remo, and Macagahay.

In La Carlota City, these are Barangays Ara-al, Haguimit, San Miguel, La Granja, Yubo, La Granja, and Balabag.

In Negros Oriental, villages likely to be hit by pyroclastic flow should Kanlaon erupt are Barangays Pula, Linothangan and Masulog in the hazard zone; while Barangays Malaiba, Mabigo (Poblacion) and Budlasan are in the buffer zone of Canlaon City.

“Stay alert, always be careful and follow the reminders and warnings of the authorities because there is still the threat of a catastrophic volcanic eruption, especially since Kanlaon Volcano is under Alert Level 3, which could be raised to Alert Level 4,” the OCD warned.

Pyroclastic density currents are fast-moving flows of volcanic particles, hot gases and ash.

These can occur due to the collapse or explosion of eruption columns, lava domes or the detachment of lava flow margins.

PDCs are the most dangerous volcanic hazards, causing severe burns, asphyxiation, dynamic pressure impacts, and burial under extremely hot volcanic materials.

Government agencies have continuously advised residents to avoid activities within the six-kilometer radius extended danger zone and to heed official advisories.

Data from the Department of Health in the Negros Island Region showed that as of Tuesday, January 14, there are 3,104 families or 9,801 individuals have been affected and housed in 22 evacuation sites due to the recent eruption of Kanlaon.

Those outside evacuation sites have reached 8,741 families composed of 28,562 individuals, data showed./WDJ