
Volcanoes in the Philippines
With 10 volcanoes in the Philippines there have been a total of 44 significant eruptions over the past 400 years. Over 7,400 people were killed. The worst volcanic eruption in terms of deaths, destroyed houses and financial damages happened on 01/30/1911 with the eruption of "Taal". Here, 1335 people died.Out of 32 volcanos in the Philippines, 18 are considered still active.
Other natural hazards in the Philippines:
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› Tsunamis
› Typhoons
› Current volcanoes worldwide
Back to overview: Philippines
The Philippines are located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, which stretches for about 40,000 km around the Pacific Ocean. Here the tectonic plate of the Pacific collides with several surrounding continental plates and seismic tremors occur again and again. Most of the world's volcanic eruptions, which are also the most severe, occur in this zone.
The following list shows all volcanic eruptions of the last 400 years with significant damage. The column "VEI" stands for the volcano explosivity index, which represents the strength of the eruption from a geological point of view. This takes into account the height and volume of the rocks ejected. The scale ranges from 0-8, with the severity of the eruption increasing tenfold with each value. For example, a VEI of 1 means that the volcano throws lava and rock masses of 100,000 to 1 million cubic meters up to 1 kilometer high. From VEI 8, a volcano is considered a super volcano. Here, more than 1,000 cubic kilometers of tephra are thrown to altitudes of more than 25 kilometers.
The highest explosivity index in the Philippines reached in the review period was VEI 6 in 1991. The volcano Pinatubo threw tephramasses of at least 10 cubic kilometers over 25 kilometers high. Such an intensity is normally only achieved every 100 years.
Significant volcanic eruptions in the Philippines in the last 400 years

The highest explosivity index in the Philippines reached in the review period was VEI 6 in 1991. The volcano Pinatubo threw tephramasses of at least 10 cubic kilometers over 25 kilometers high. Such an intensity is normally only achieved every 100 years.
Eruption | Volcano | VEI | Deaths | Total damage |
---|---|---|---|---|
01/12/2020 | Taal | 4 | 39 | |
01/13/2018 | Mayon | 0 | 0 | |
05/07/2013 | Mayon | 0 | 5 | |
02/23/2011 | Bulusan | 2 | 1 | |
11/30/2006 | Mayon | 1 | 1266 | |
06/07/2006 | Bulusan | 2 | 1 | |
08/10/1996 | Kanlaon | 2 | 3 | |
09/06/1995 | Parker | 0 | 60 | |
10/04/1993 | Pinatubo | 0 | 14 | |
06/26/1993 | Pinatubo | 1 | 4 | |
02/02/1993 | Mayon | 2 | 75 | |
07/12/1992 | Pinatubo | 1 | 6 | |
06/15/1991 | Pinatubo | 6 | 350 | |
09/09/1984 | Mayon | 3 | 1 | |
06/30/1981 | Mayon | 0 | 200 | |
07/29/1978 | Bulusan | 2 | 0 | |
03/21/1969 | Didicas | 2 | 0 | |
04/21/1968 | Mayon | 3 | 6 | |
09/28/1965 | Taal | 4 | 355 | |
01/01/1954 | Camiguin | 0 | 2 | |
01/01/1952 | Ambalatungan Group | 1 | 12 | |
12/04/1951 | Camiguin | 3 | 500 | |
09/15/1950 | Camiguin | 3 | 68 | |
06/01/1949 | Camiguin | 3 | 2 | |
01/07/1947 | Mayon | 2 | 0 | |
06/05/1938 | Mayon | 2 | 0 | |
12/25/1933 | Bulusan | 2 | 0 | |
01/01/1928 | Mayon | 3 | 0 | |
01/30/1911 | Taal | 3 | 1335 | |
05/23/1897 | Mayon | 3 | 350 | |
03/09/1887 | Mayon | 3 | 15 | |
01/01/1875 | Mayon | 0 | 1500 | |
07/19/1874 | Taal | 2 | 0 | |
01/16/1873 | Ragang | 2 | 0 | |
12/08/1871 | Mayon | 3 | 3 | |
04/30/1871 | Camiguin | 2 | 0 | |
01/01/1858 | Mayon | 2 | 0 | |
07/13/1853 | Mayon | 3 | 34 | |
02/01/1814 | Mayon | 4 | 1200 | |
10/30/1800 | Mayon | 2 | 0 | |
07/20/1766 | Mayon | 3 | 49 | |
05/13/1754 | Taal | 4 | 12 | |
08/11/1749 | Taal | 3 | 0 | |
09/24/1716 | Taal | 4 | 0 |
All volcanoes in the Philippines
Volcano | Elevation | Status | Last eruption |
---|---|---|---|
Apo | 2953 m | Solfatara stage | |
Babuyan Claro | 1160 m | Active | |
Babuyan Claro | 240 m | Active | |
Balut | 883 m | Active | |
Banahao | 2177 m | Active | |
Biliran | 1187 m | Solfatara stage | |
Budd Dayo | 399 m | Potentially active | |
Bulusan | 1559 m | Active | 02/23/2011 |
Cagua | 1158 m | Active | |
Calayo | 1678 m | Active | |
Caniguin | 580 m | Potentially active | |
Canlaon | 2465 m | Active | |
Casiboy | Solfatara stage | ||
Catarman | 1332 m | Active | |
Danan | Solfatara stage | ||
Didicas | 736 m | Active | 03/21/1969 |
Jalajala | Solfatara stage | ||
Jolo | Active | ||
Kabalian | 945 m | Solfatara stage | |
Latucan | 2158 m | Solfatara stage | |
Macuturing | 1940 m | Solfatara stage | |
Magaso | 1904 m | Solfatara stage | |
Malinao | 1657 m | Solfatara stage | |
Mandalagan | 1879 m | Solfatara stage | |
Maquiling | 1109 m | Solfatara stage | |
Matutum | 2293 m | Active | |
Mayon | 2990 m | Active | 01/13/2018 |
Pocdol Mountains | 1099 m | Solfatara stage | |
Ragang | 2815 m | Active | 01/16/1873 |
Silay | 1535 m | Solfatara stage | |
Smith Volcano | 670 m | Active | |
Taal | 300 m | Active | 01/12/2020 |
These statistics are based on datas from the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program (GVP), and the Significant Volcanic Eruptions Database of the National Geophysical Data Center (NOAA) / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS) doi:10.7289/V5JW8BSH. Several data have been summarized and translated.