The alert for Mayon Volcano in the Philippines province of Albay is raised from level three to level four by local authorities, meaning a "hazardous eruption is imminent".

Lava fountains shoot out of the Mayon volcano in Albay, the Philippines, on the night of January 21, 2018. (Credit: ABC)

The alert for Mayon Volcano in the Philippines province of Albay has been raised from level three to level four by local authorities, meaning a "hazardous eruption is imminent".

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the volcano was experiencing "intense unrest".

The institute upgraded the alert to level four just a few minutes after the volcano suddenly erupted lava at around noon local time.

The highest alert level is five.

Local authorities have evacuated residents nearby and expanded the alert area to eight kilometres.

There are no reports of any chaos so far in the surrounding area.

The volcano became active on January 13 and its alert level was raised from level one to level three, before going quiet for a week.

Albay Governor Al Francis Bichara said all schools in the province would be suspended on January 23.

Mount Mayon — one of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines and famous for its beauty and near-perfect symmetry — is located on Luzon Island, more than 300 kilometres south-east of the Philippines capital Manila, and has an elevation of 2,462 metres. </s> LEGAZPI CITY—The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) on Thursday raised the alert level over Mt. Mayon in Albay province from zero to 1 after it observed abnormalities around the volcano.

Ed Laguerta, resident volcanologist of Phivolcs here, said 146 earthquakes had been recorded in areas around the volcano from Aug. 3 to 6, with epicenter traced to Santo Domingo town.

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Laguerta also described the volcano’s base ground as “inflated.” Michael Jaucian, Inquirer Southern Luzon

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The alert level for the Mayon Volcano in the Philippines is increased after more than a hundred earthquakes were detected in its vicinity.