MANILA, Philippines — At least 3.5 million students at all levels are currently affected by the continuous volcanic smog emissions of Taal Volcano, the Department of Education said.
Since August 19, several institutions surrounding the area have either canceled classes or suspended their in-person sessions due to the risk of inhaling volcanic smog or “vog” from Taal Volcano.
In its recent bulletin, DepEd said that the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) region recorded the most affected learners, with a total of 2,850,095 students impacted. This was followed by 730,336 in the National Capital Region (NCR) and 5,992 in MIMAROPA (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan). In addition to the students, approximately 112,791 teaching and non-teaching staff across these three regions were also affected.
In terms of schools, a total of 2,967 were impacted, including 2,685 in Calabarzon, 254 in Metro Manila, and 28 in Mimaropa.
The education bureau has greenlit institutions to cancel in person in areas affected by the Taal vog until it is safe to return to the physical setup.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) reported that as of Wednesday, no more volcanic smog was observed over Taal Volcano.
