Legazpi city: Over 1,000 hectares of crops have been impacted by the recent effusive eruption of Mayon Volcano, as reported by the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) on Saturday. The agency highlighted that the pyroclastic density current from the eruption has significantly affected agricultural areas, posing challenges to local farmers and the agricultural sector.
According to Emirates News Agency, PhilSA's satellite data revealed that the eruption engulfed a total of 1,039 hectares of rice and 191 hectares of other crops. This area of destruction equates to the size of Mandaluyong City, illustrating the extensive nature of the impact.
PhilSA's statement further explained that Physical Rice Areas, typically planted with rice during the cropping season, were identified using data from the Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice). Other Crop Areas were assessed based on changing vegetation patterns observed in Sentinel-2 satellite imagery from January to December 2024. Additionally, the eruption has affected at least 158 kilometers of roads, which fall within the Estimated Ash Deposit Extent, as determined from datasets of road networks.
