The volcanoes in Datunshan (大屯山), located in Taipei City’s Beitou District (北投), pose no immediate danger, scientists at Academia Sinica and the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said in a joint statement yesterday.
“The last volcanic eruptions in Datunshan probably occurred more than 18,000 years ago,” the statement said. “Although some researchers have proposed that there were eruptions a few thousand years ago, further evidence is needed to support this theory.”
“The number of earthquakes in the Datunshan area show no signs of increasing, so there is no imminent threat of a volcanic eruption,” the statement added.
CWB Seismology Center director Kuo Kai-wen (郭鎧紋) said they decided to issue such a statement after having received many e-mails from people who were concerned about potential volcanic eruptions in Datunshan.
Benjamin Chao (趙丰), director of the Institute of Earth Sciences at Academia Sinica, research fellow at the institute Lin Cheng-horng (林正洪) and CWB director-general Shin Tzay-chyn (辛在勤), who is also a seismologist, endorsed the statement.
The scientists said in the statement that magmatic action can be monitored through earthquakes that occur near the volcanoes and by using data on crustal deformation. A warning about a volcanic eruption can be issued a few days or even a few weeks in advance of such an event, giving sufficient time to evacuate the area or take other safety precautions, they added.
As examples, they said the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991 was successfully predicted by scientists.
This year, officials in Japan had about a week to warn those living around Mount Shinmoedake after forecasting a potential eruption.
Kuo added that the eruption of underwater volcanoes along Taiwan’s east coast would be unlikely to result in any casualties or property damage.
“They are located east of Turtle Island (龜山島), which is very far from Taiwan proper,” Kuo said. “While their movements generate earthquakes, they are mostly unnoticeable and measured below magnitude two.”
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