Thousands evacuated as volcano erupts

Thousands of villagers were evacuated from their homes near the Philippines' most active volcano today after it oozed lava and shot plumes of ash.

State volcanologists raised the alert level on the cone-shaped, 8,070ft (2,460m) Mayon volcano overnight to two steps below a major eruption after ash explosions and dark orange lava fragments glowing in the dark trickled down the mountain slope.