Fisherfolk return to their normal activities at the Taal lake in Talisay, Batangas on Saturday, September 23, 2023, as the volcanic smog from the Taal volcano clears due to the rains. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File

MANILA — Taal Volcano in Batangas made a 4-minute steam-driven eruption on Wednesday morning, producing 2,000-meter-high plumes that drifted southwest, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

Phivolcs said the "weak" phreatic or steam-driven eruption happened between 8:27 a.m. to 08:31 a.m.

It noted that the phreatic activity could be driven by the persistent emission of hot volcanic gases at the Taal Main Crater and warned similar events could follow.

Phivolcs however said that Taal Volcano's unrest was unlikely to progress into a potentially dangerous magmatic eruption, citing background levels of earthquake activity and detected ground deformation.

Taal Volcano remains under Alert Level 1 which means that it is still in "abnormal condition and should not be interpreted to have ceased unrest nor ceased the threat of eruptive activity."

"At Alert Level 1, sudden steam-driven or phreatic explosions, volcanic earthquakes, minor ashfall and lethal accumulations or expulsions of volcanic gas can occur and threaten areas within" the Taal Volcano Island, it added.

Entry into the Taal Volcano Island and its permanent danger zones is strictly prohibited, the seismology agency said.

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