The local chief executive of this highly urbanized city is urging residents to pray for those who have been affected by the eruption of Taal volcano in the province of Batangas.

This was the appeal of Mayor Jerry P. Treñas during Monday’s regular flag-raising ceremony at Plaza Libertad here as he noted that some of his friends were in the Luzon area. He added that he was informed that they felt tremors, there was continuous ash fall and the people were asked to evacuate.

“Let us pray for the people in Batangas, Cavite and especially those in Tagaytay. For the past several years, Tagaytay has become a recreational area,” he said.

He shared that based on what he read, one previous eruption of the Tagaytay volcano lasted for seven months.

“I do not know how this is going to push through but others are saying that the crater of Taal is as big as the area of Quezon City. And the crater is the whole Taal lake. Hopefully, this will not last very long, Hopefully, this is not a big eruption,” he added.

The mayor said that a lot will be affected, including flights to and from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, some of which were put on hold.

Rev. Father Edsel Alcayaga, the parish priest of San Jose de Placer here, also called for prayers amid “what is happening in the world right now”.

“Let us pray that we will be spared from both man-made and natural calamities,” he said.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) on Sunday raised Alert Level 4 over Taal volcano which means “hazardous eruption is possible within days”.

Residents within the 14-kilometer radius of the volcano are recommended for evacuation due to “high risk to pyroclastic density currents and volcanic tsunami”. (PNA)