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Mayon Volcano's 1814 Eruption Impact

Mayon volcano in the Philippines has had many eruptions over the past 500 years, erupting over 47 times. Its most destructive recorded eruption was in February 1814 (VEI=4), when lava flowed and the volcano ejected dark ash that buried the town of Cagsawa, killing around 1,200 people. This 1814 eruption is considered Mayon's most lethal. In 1881-1882, Mayon erupted continuously for around a year, pouring lava down its slopes.

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Keith Anthony Amor
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18 views1 page

Mayon Volcano's 1814 Eruption Impact

Mayon volcano in the Philippines has had many eruptions over the past 500 years, erupting over 47 times. Its most destructive recorded eruption was in February 1814 (VEI=4), when lava flowed and the volcano ejected dark ash that buried the town of Cagsawa, killing around 1,200 people. This 1814 eruption is considered Mayon's most lethal. In 1881-1882, Mayon erupted continuously for around a year, pouring lava down its slopes.

Uploaded by

Keith Anthony Amor
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© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines, erupting over 47 times in the past 500 years.

[12]
 Historical observations accounted its first eruption in 1616. [13] The first eruption for which an
extended account exists was the six-day event of July 20, 1766. [14][15]

1814 eruption[edit]

An old photograph of the Cagsawa ruins with the façade still standing. The church was largely destroyed during
the 1814 eruption of Mayon. Only the bell tower exists today.

Its most destructive recorded eruption occurred on February 1, 1814 (VEI=4).[13][16] Lava flowed but
less than the 1766 eruption. The volcano belched dark ash and eventually bombarded the town
of Cagsawa with tephra that buried it.[13][16] Trees burned, and rivers were certainly damaged.
Proximate areas were also devastated by the eruption, with ash accumulating to in depth. In
Cagsawa town, about 1,200 locals perished in what is considered to be the most lethal eruption in
Mayon's history according to PHIVOLCS.[13][16] The eruption is believed to have contributed to the
accumulation of atmospheric ash together with the catastrophic 1815 eruption of other volcanoes
like Indonesia's Mount Tambora, leading to the Year Without a Summer in 1816.[citation needed]

1881–1882 eruption[edit]
From July 6, 1881, until approximately August 1882, Mayon underwent a strong (VEI=3)
eruption. Samuel Kneeland, a naturalist, professor and geologist, personally observed the volcanic
activity on Christmas Day, 1881, about five months after the start of the activity:
At the date of my visit, the volcano had poured out, for five months continuously, a stream of lava on
the Legaspi side from the very summit. The viscid mass bubbled quietly but grandly, and overran the
border of the crater, descending several hundred feet in a glowing wave, like red-hot iron. Gradually,
fading as the upper surface cooled, it changed to a thousand sparkling rills among the crevices, and,
as it passed beyond the line of complete vision behind the woods near the base, the fires twinkled
like stars or the scintillations of a dying conflagration. More than half of the mountain height was thus
illuminated.[17]

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