Mt. Fitzherbert

Potential ash hazards: Wind forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), coupled with eruption models, show that any ash clouds that rise above the crater rim today would drift east-northeastward at low altitudes, and eastward at higher altitudes.

Recent observations: In response to reports of minor ash fall associated with Wednesday evening's thunderstorms, a crew flew by the volcano yesterday, but found no new ashfall deposits on the volcano. Dust and ash that fell in raindrops constituted fine material entrained by the storms, possibly from fine ash rising from small rockfalls off the dome. The volcano remains in a relatively quiet state, emitting low levels of gas and generating small earthquakes about every 3 to 5 minutes. On a somber note, the CVO staff is saddened by news of the tragic loss of several colleagues from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology in a helicopter crash yesterday.