Camiguin is indeed one of the magnificent destinations here in the Philippines.
But did you know why it is dubbed “Island Born of Fire”?
It is because the disaster that the volcanic eruption has caused shaped the province into the beautiful and majestic destination it is today.
But before becoming one of the best destinations in the country, Camiguin has a dark and tragic past for its locals and its ancestors.
The 1951 eruption of Mt. Hibok-hibok is regarded as the most violent eruption in history, with 2000 lives lost and millions of pesos worth of property and buildings destroyed. Many were discovered sleeping, while others were coated in volcanic ash and preserved or mummified. Some died by asphyxiation when oxygen was consumed by the billow of gas and carried high in the air, leaving the victims with no air to breathe.
The island’s population fell to around 34,000 after the devastating eruption, down from 69,000 before the eruption. Many people fled the island in fear of additional eruptions and relocated elsewhere. The PHIVOLCS station was then constructed atop Mt. Hibok-Hibok to monitor its activity. Life on the island gradually returned to normal. Camiguin’s population has grown, and the provincial administration is currently working to enhance the island’s resources for tourism purposes.
The video below shows the news coverage provided by British Pathé at the time of the tragedy.
(Camiguin Philippines Mt. Hibok-Hibok, 2020) (Arguillas, 2020)
Video from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_pTwnURbk4