A volcano has erupted in northern Indonesia, releasing molten lava, hot ash, and thick smoke and leaving local residents in panic.
According to reports, Mount Soputan in Indonesia's North Sulawesi Province spewed smoke up to 4,000 meters into the sky on Sunday.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said it has issued special instruction for the local residents and raised its alert status in the region.
"Villagers are banned to enter areas within [a] 6.5-kilometre radius from the crater," media outlets quoted BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho as saying.
The volcano has been showing signs of increased volcanic activity since January 14.
Sources say spewed ash was being blown to the south-west Mount Soputan, which erupted twice on January 6 and has been showing increased activity since then.
On December 19, 2014, Mount Gamalama on the Ternate Island in North Maluku Province spewed smoke up to 2,000 meters into the sky. It released hot ash when slow-moving red lava was visible at the peak of the eruption.
Indonesia has about 129 active volcanoes. The country lies on the major tectonic fault lines known as the Ring of Fire between the Pacific and Indian oceans.
In 2010, more than 350 people lost their lives, following a series of volcanic eruptions in Mount Merapi in central Java.
--
__._,_.___
No comments:
Post a Comment