Albay gov't evacuates 10,000 livestock from Mayon danger zone
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 12) – The Albay provincial government has so far evacuated 10,000 farm animals from the six-kilometer radius permanent danger zone of Mayon Volcano amid its increasing unrest.
In a statement on Monday, Albay provincial veterinarian Pancho Mella said the animals from the affected areas were housed in evacuation areas some 7 or 8 kilometers away from the volcano's crater.
The affected areas are Sto. Domingo, Daraga, Guinobatan, Camalig, Maliliipot, Ligao City, Tabaco City and Legazpi City.
Livestock including cows, carabaos and goats were housed in the designated evacuation areas. However, swine and dogs were excluded due to the difficulty of maintenance and lack of proper facilities.
The animals will be moved again to 9 km or 10 km assigned sites once Mayon's status is raised to Alert Level 4.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology earlier said 21 volcanic earthquakes were already recorded. However, it clarified that Mayon Volcano's alert level has not yet been raised to level 4.
RELATED: More weak quakes recorded in Mayon but alert not yet raised to Level 4 Phivolcs
The Albay Veterinary Office said the local government will also provide feed, non-feed supplies, veterinary support, and veterinary-related interventions to the affected farmers and their animals.
The latest collated data recorded more than 4,000 affected farmers.
The Albay Veterinary Office added that it will conduct animal tagging and healthcare activities such as check-ups, treatments and vitamin supplementations in the animal evacuation areas.
