surfacing of a volcano on an island near the capital popular Magma Philippines took the government on Saturday to raise its alert level and urge visitors to stay away.
The second stage of a five-step alert has been imposed around Taal Volcano, a visitor is about 65 kilometers (40 miles) south of Manila, after signs of increased activity were detected.
While this does not mean an eruption is imminent, the government volcano monitoring officer Julio Sabit said tourists and residents were warned to stay away from the crater of Taal and thermal vents on the north side.
"It's still a gray area. We can not yet say whether it will culminate in an eruption," Sabit said AFP.
The volcano could cause more intense activity, but could also decrease slowly as it did last year, after showing increased activity in June, Sabit said.
Taal is one of the most unstable of 22 known active volcanoes in the country with 33 recorded eruptions, the last in 1977.
A lake that surrounds the crater prevent deaths in 1977 and for other eruptions, as the body of water protected the outskirts of the lava.
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