Spectacular lava “fireworks” shooting from its crater are drawing tourists to the Philippines’ most active volcano, authorities said Tuesday as scientists warned of a potential dangerous eruption within days. But even as thousands of residents flee, tourists are flocking to the area, some 330 kilometres (205 miles) southeast of Manila to watch and photograph the spectacle, Danny Garcia, a spokesman for Albay province told AFP. But it’s a natural phenomenon so we don’t know when an (explosive) eruption will happen,” Garcia added. The state volcanology institute described the natural pyrotechnics as “short-duration lava fountaining”, an escalation from the slow lava flow from the crater a day earlier. However hotels reported getting more tourist bookings while people flocked to viewing decks to watch the volcano from a distance, the provincial government said although it gave no specific figures.

Source: The Guardian January 16, 2018 08:15 UTC