(CNN Philippines) Metro Manila — The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology on Thursday raised the status of Taal Volcano to Alert Level 3 following a phreatomagmatic eruption.

The eruption was recorded at 3:16 p.m. and lasted until 3:21 p.m., Phivolcs said in an advisory. The crater at the time generated a “short-lived dark phreatomagmatic plume” that was one kilometer high.

A phreatomagmatic eruption is one that involves both magma and water, Phivolcs explained.

“Ang magma po at ang tubig na siya pong nasa lawa ng main crater ay nagdampi, nagkaroon na po ng contact. Kaya po ang tubig, bigla po siyang naco-convert sa gas in the form of water vapor,” Phivolcs volcano monitoring chief Mariton Bornas said in a briefing.

[Translation: The magma and water in the lake of the main crater came into contact. That’s why the water was converted to gas in the form of water vapor.]

“Ito po ang pagkakaiba ng phreatomagmatic sa phreatic. ‘Yung phreatic po ay steam-driven, pero ang phreatomagmatic ay meron na pong kasamang magma,” she added.

[Translation: This is the difference between phreatomagmatic and phreatic. Phreatic is steam-driven, but phreatomagmatic involves magma.]

Evacuation underway
Phivolcs also recommended evacuation in Taal Volcano Island as well as the high-risk barangays of Agoncillo and Laurel in Batangas due to possible hazards.

The institute also reminded the public that the volcano island is a Permanent Danger Zone, and that entry into the vicinity is prohibited.

Authorities in Agoncillo and Laurel have started their evacuation activities as of Thursday afternoon, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported.

‘Not the same scenario’
Meanwhile, Phivolcs said it is not expecting the same scenario as last year’s Taal eruption, which forced thousands of Batangas residents to flee their homes.

“’Yung January 2020, sa maliit na explosion lumaki nang lumaki kasi nga may pressure… Ngayon ay nagde-degas nga po,” Phivolcs Officer-in-Charge Renato Solidum explained, adding that the latest eruption was not as explosive as last year’s activity.

[Translation: In January 2020, the small explosion became bigger because there is pressure… Now, it’s degassing.]

The agency noted it will continuously monitor the situation and parameters along Taal, with the alert level subject to change at this point.