Fresno siblings concerned for parents in Philippines during volcano eruption

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- You can hear Kathy Sisk describe how close the Taal volcano is to her Batangas Province backyard.

But as the smoke and ash filled the air for miles and reached their home in the city of Tagaytay just a few miles away, her son and two daughters in Fresno could sense her concern.

"And then when the ash started covering up their yard, she realized it was serious and they had to start to have to put on dust masks on," says Sean Tambagahan.

Tambagahan and his two sisters can only communicate through occasional text messages because their mother, Kathy, and step-dad, Len Tambagahan, don't have any electricity.

"We wired them some funds, so now they're going to travel to Manila and go get a generator and come back, so they at least have some electricity," Sean said. "Really, they just need to get out of the city."

They just moved into their current home in the Philippines last year. The muddy ash is so thick you can smooth it out and write on it.

"She tends to panic and gets worried, and that's what really gets me worried," Sean said.

The kids would prefer their parents to get an Airbnb or hotel room in Manila 65 miles away, but they're hesitant to leave. The couple has spent a lot of their money fixing up their home over the past few months.

"Everybody over there who's in that area, they really need to just get out if they can, but it's easier said than done when you have millions of people living over there," Sean said.

Like many other residents in the area, Tambagahan says his parents need water and non-perishable food.

Eleven evacuation centers were closed today because they were too close to the affected region.

No deaths have been reported. The last time Taal volcano erupted was back in 1977.