【講師コラム】マデル講師No.2

オンライン英語スクール Englishbuds 管理人 Mommy Kayo です。

今日はマデル講師のコラムとなります。

先日噴火したタール火山。

現地から今の状況とタール火山の歴史を

マデルが解説してくれます♪

火山の専門用語などが入っていますので

少し難易度が高くなっていますが

頑張って読んでみてください♪

Taal Volcano is considered as one of the smallest active volcanoes in the world. But don’t let its small size fool you.
It is the second most active volcano in our country, spewing death and destruction at least 33 times in Philippine recorded history.
It is also among the world’s 16 Decade Volcanoes as classified by the International Association
of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior. Decade Volcanoes bring the attention of the scientific community due to their large, catastrophic, and frequent eruptions.
The marine life study of Taal Lake indicates that the body of water may have been salt water in pre-historic time.
It is believed that the whole area itself including the surrounding province of Cavite and Batangas was once part of an immense pre-historic volcano estimated to be 18,000 feet high which erupted violently and collapsed into a caldera with a channel opening towards Balayan Bay.
Between 1572 to the present, more than 41 eruptions occurred with the last eruption of 1754 lasting close to six months.

It darkened the skies over Manila for days, so that people literally walked around the city carrying lanterns even at 10:00 in the morning.
It is most probable that this eruption finally closed the open channel to the sea that allowed the accumulation of fresh water from rainfall leading to the formation of Taal Lake.
The island within a lake within an island within a lake within an island! Confusing, right? Well, Taal Volcano has always been dubbed a “Volcano Island within a Lake within an Island.”
Translation: Taal Volcano within Taal Lake within Luzon Island.
Oh, and one more thing, Taal Volcano in Taal Lake is one of the most famous tourist spots in the Philippines.

But after 4 decades of dormancy, Taal Volcano started to erupt on Sunday, January 12, 2020. It was totally surprising and extremely scary. Volcanic lightning streaks were seen in an ash cloud as it was erupting.
Its eruption caused nearly half a million of people around the area to evacuate and caused hundreds of of flights to be cancelled. Many animals were left behind and died. It breaks my heart everytime I see photos of those animals left on the island, and how I wish I could rescue all of them.

Human lives will always be important, but so are the lives of these animals. I can’t help but feel sorry for all of these (seemingly) abandoned animals in the towns surrounding Taal Volcano. I hope they can be cared for somehow.
But amidts all these seemingly endless heartbreaking events happening around me, there is one thing that I really am so happy to witness… People from different races, different countries and different religious sectors came together to extend help to those who are affected by Taal Volcano eruption.

It has been 5 days since the eruption occured, Taal Volcano seems to be calmer now. But we were warned not to be fooled by its seeming slowdown. Taal Volcano has been under alert level 4, which warns of a “hazardous” eruption in the next “hours or days”. Taal Volcano’s main crater and the river connected
to it are now dried up, more fissures (cracks or opening) are appearing around Taal Volcano and we heard that it is an indication of of magma building up and a much bigger eruption.
I do pray that Taal Volcano would just rest. But whatever happens, there is one thing I am sure about.., I am positive that Filipinos would be able to rise again from this tragedy.