MANILA - Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos said Friday that the government has evacuated over 45,000 residents from villages around the active Kanlaon Volcano, which erupted on Monday.

Marcos said the government targets evacuating around 84,000 villagers within the six-km danger zone from the volcano.

Marcos said the government is ready to assist residents impacted by the eruption, which blanketed several villages with ashes and contaminated drinking water sources in the community.

"We will step up. Any escalation in damages and destruction will be met with a stronger government response," Marcos said.

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Kanlaon, which straddles the provinces of Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental on the island of Negros in the central Philippines, spewed a "voluminous plume" that rose more than 4,000 meters into the sky on Monday afternoon.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology warned that more explosive eruptions might occur, urging residents within the danger zone and beyond to move to safety.

Marcos appealed to the residents, especially those reluctant to leave their houses and farms, to immediately move to safety by staying in makeshift evacuation centers such as schools that were temporarily converted into shelters.

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Kanlaon, one of the country's 24 most active volcanoes, last erupted in June.