Fake photos, videos alert: Public advised of misleading online posts on Kanlaon Volcano

June 4, 2024 - 5:22 PM
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Screenshots of photos and videos flagged by Salta Canlaon Turismo as fake. (Salta Canlaon Turismo / Facebook)

The tourism office of Canlaon City informed online users of fake photos and videos circulating amid the eruption of Kanlaon Volcano on Negros Island.

The photos were lifted from the Facebook page “View of Canlaon” which identifies as a “personal blog.”

“FOR THE INFORMATION OF EVERYONE: Canlaon is not going through this,” Salta Canlaon Turismo said on Facebook Tuesday.

“Remain calm, our local government units are working tirelessly to help anyone in need of immediate assistance,” it added.

“Please help us by reporting any incorrect information you come across,” the tourism office concluded.

It also posted screengrabs from videos which featured a volcano spewing bright orange-red lava.

The “Views of Canlaon” page has already deleted the misleading post as of this writing.

Filipinos can stay updated about Mount Kanlaon’s status by following the official Facebook and X accounts of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS).

The Kanlaon Volcano erupted on Monday evening under Alert Level 1 (Low Level of Volcanic Unrest).

PHIVOLCS then placed it under Alert Level 2 (Moderate Level of Volcanic Unrest) after it sent a five-kilometer plume of ash, gas, and rocks into the sky.

Nearly 800 residents were displaced by the eruption, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

READ: Officials order evacuation, urge caution after Kanlaon Volcano eruption

Kanlaon Volcano, which straddles the provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, is one of the 24 active volcanoes in the archipelago.

The Philippines lies in the seismically active “Pacific Ring of Fire,” home to over half of the world’s volcanoes.