MANILA — No Filipino was reported among the fatalities in Guatemala after Volcán de Fuego, an active volcano located outside the capital Guatemala City, erupted on Sunday, leaving at least 60 persons dead, hundreds injured and an undetermined number missing.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Monday evening said the Philippine Embassy in Mexico is in touch with leaders of the Filipino community in the Central American nation to determine if any of the more than 200 Filipinos there have been affected by the eruption and would require assistance.
In a statement, DFA Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, who was in Seoul, South Korea, extended his sympathies to the affected families in Guatemala.
“The government and people of Guatemala are in our thoughts and prayers,” he said. “We hope that there would be no further loss of life and property in this unforeseen tragedy,” he said.
More than 3,000 people have been evacuated from villages near the volcano and authorities fear the death toll may climb as the entire communities remain unaccounted for.
Authorities in Guatemala said more than 1.7 million people have been affected by the eruption, which was described as the most violent in four decades. (Joyce Ann L. Rocamora/PNA)
