Mayon Volcano

MAYON VOLCANO, ALBAY

Mayon Volcano (Tagalog: Bulkang Mayon, Central Bikol: Bulkan Mayon), also known as Mount Mayon, is an active volcano in the province of Albay, on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Renowned as the "perfect cone" because of its almost symmetric conical shape, the mountain was declared a national park and a protected landscape on July 20, 1938, the first in the country. It was reclassified a Natural Park and renamed Mayon Volcano Natural Park in the year 2000. 

Classified as a stratovolcano (a volcano made up of layers of lava alternating with cinder and ash) Mount Mayon or Mayon Volcano is very much active and is located in the in the Bicol Region, in the province of Albay, on Luzon Island, Philippines.

Located just fifteen kilometers from Albay’s busy city of Legazpi, Mount Mayon is famous for it perfect inverted cone shaped appearance which is instantly recognizable because it is probably the most photographed volcano in the country.

Mount Mayon’s most devastating eruption happened on the 1st of February 1814. Though lava flowed, it did not flow as much as it did in 1766. The volcano instead belched black ash and ultimately bombarded the town of Cagsawa with tephra (dust and ashes) and eventually buried it. Only the town church’s belfry tower was left on the surface. All vegetation in the area was burned and waterways were predictably damaged. 

Areas nearby were also damaged by the eruption as ash accumulated to a depth of 9 meters.

Over two thousand residents of Albay locals died in what is believed to be the most deadly eruption in the history of Mount Mayon.

The longest recorded uninterrupted eruption of Mayon Volcano happened on June 23, 1897 and it lasted for 7 continuous days of fire raining, seemingly, from the heavens. The village of Bacacay was buried under tons of lava which flowed and buried the town and rose to height of nearly fifty feet.