ILOILO City – The Kanlaon Volcano eruption in Negros Island has caused the cancellation of flights at the Bacolod-Silay Airport in Negros Occidental and Iloilo Airport in Iloilo Province, affecting nearly 3,000 passengers.
The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Region 6 reported that a total of 2,951 passengers were stranded yesterday morning.
To prioritize safety, all flights at the two airports were grounded due to concerns about volcanic ash and debris damaging aircraft.
“We do not want to gamble the safety of our passengers,,” said Engr. Eusebio Monserate Jr., CAAP-6 area manager.
The whole morning flight cancellations affected three airlines – Cebu Pacific Air, Philippine Airlines, and AirAsia.
The breakdown of affected passengers per airport is as follows:
Bacolod-Silay Airport
* 1,501 passengers – AirAsia (180), Cebu Pacific Air (488), Philippine Airlines (833)
Iloilo Airport
* 1,450 passengers – AirAsia (180), Cebu Pacific Air (920), Philippine Airlines (350)
By 11 a.m., CAAP announced that Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines counters at the Bacolod-Silay Airport had reopened.
Cebu Pacific and AirAsia check-in counters at the Iloilo Airport also resumed operations around the same time.
CAAP advised passengers to coordinate with their respective airlines for the latest flight information.
The Kanlaon Volcano eruption began around 6:51 p.m. on Monday, producing a 5,000-meter plume.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) raised the volcano’s alert to Level 2. This meant that there was current unrest driven by shallow magnetic processes that could eventually lead to further explosive eruptions or even precede hazardous magmatic eruption.
Part of the Phivolcs advisory read: “Civil aviation authorities must also advise pilots to avoid flying close to the volcano’s summit as ash from any sudden eruption can be hazardous to aircraft.”/PN
