On Monday, a volcano in the central Philippines briefly erupted. The government ordered the evacuation of villages around the volcano. A large column of ash rose in the air.

The explosion lasted for nearly four minutes and sent a 2.5-mile high ash column, a deadly blast, and volcanic rock fragments about two miles to the southeast. The officials warned that more explosive eruptions would be coming soon.

Maria Antonia Bornas compared being struck by pyroclastic turbulence to being run over by a fast car.

She called on local officials to evacuate 15 villages within six kilometers of the crater.

She said that the ash from the eruption fell on towns and cities nearby, but that there were no reports of injuries or damage. The heavy rains may cause the volcanic material to be displaced burying the communities below.

According to Staff Sergeant Ronel Arevalo of the municipal police, “Evacuations are ongoing” at La Castellana on the southwest side of the volcano. He didn’t know how many residents would be evacuated.

Dianne Abendan (24), of La Castellana, recorded a video on her phone of a large grey cauliflower-shaped cloud of smoke billowing above the crater.

“We’ve seen black smoke coming from the volcano over the last few days,” She told AFP she was expecting it to erupt in the next few days.

Abendan said that people fled to their homes for the evacuation orders. He added, however, that the volcanic activity appeared to have slowed about an hour later.

Authorities said flights to and from the Bacolod-Silay International Airport (which is the closest airport to the volcano) were normal. Carriers have been advised not to fly below 10,000 feet near the volcano.

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines issued a bulletin warning that flying near the volcanic area could be dangerous because of the possibility of magmatic and steam-driven eruptions.

In the month of September, hundreds of people were evacuated after the volcano released thousands of tons of harmful gas within a single day. According to the seismology division, Kanlaon has erupted more than 40 times since 1866.

In 1996, three hikers were killed by the eruption of volcanic ash.