Indonesia’s deadly Mount Kelud billowed thick smoke on Monday amid signs of a major eruption, while another volcano nearby sent clouds of ash raining down on towns and villages.
At least one other of Indonesia’s approximately 100 active volcanoes was also smoking as well as firing out red-hot stones and lava — illustrating the powerful seismic forces at work in the nation.
Authorities monitoring the peaks were most worried about Kelud on the country’s densely populated Java island because of its deadly history, including a 1919 explosion that killed thousands.
The temperature of the crater lake on Mount Kelud was so great that nearby monitoring equipment was no longer working, said Surono, one of 16 volcanologists watching over the peak 24 hours a day.
Despite the threat, there was little sense of panic on Kelud’s slopes, witnesses said.
While several thousand people have fled to government shelters, authorities said on Sunday that about 25 000 others were ignoring evacuation orders and remained in the danger zone around Kelud.
Officials have made no attempts to prevent people from travelling inside a 10km zone around the peak that the local government says is off-limits.
”I feel it is OK to stay here,” said Sukirno, who was tending papaya plants about 7km from the peak. ”No one can guarantee our safety apart from ourselves.”
Kelud has been on the highest alert level for more than two weeks, but since Friday scientists have been warning an eruption may be imminent based on the frequency of tremors shaking the mountain and the temperature of its lake.
In 1990, Mount Kelud spat out red-hot gases, mud and lava that killed more than 30 people and injured hundreds. In 1919, a powerful explosion that reportedly could be heard hundreds of kilometres away killed at least 5 160.
”If it goes this time, it will be much larger than in 1990,” said Surono, basing his prediction on the number of tremors and the lake temperature — both of which have been much higher than in the days preceding the earlier blast.
The team monitoring the volcano has also said an eruption may be small or gradual — or might not happen at all given the unpredictable nature of the 1 703m mountain.
About 70km south-east of Kelud, Mount Semeru was also putting on a display, sending out clouds high into the air that coated buildings in nearby villagers and Blitar town with a fine layer of ash, witnesses said.
Activity at the two volcanoes was not believed to be linked, said volcanologist Umar Rosadi.
Ash rain from Semeru is common in the town, and Rosadi said people had no need to worry. No evacuations were ordered.
Anak Krakatoa off the northern tip of Java island was spitting out hot stones and lava as well as rolling clouds of ash, television footage showed. It was also on the second-highest alert.
The volcano, which in English means ”Krakatoa’s Child”, was formed after the massive eruption of Krakatoa volcano in 1883. That blast was heard nearly 3 200km away in Australia and sent surges of gas and burning ash that, combined with a tsunami, killed at least 36 000 people.
Indonesia is spread across 17 500 islands and is prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes because of its location within the so-called ”Ring of Fire” — a series of fault lines stretching from the western hemisphere through Japan and South-East Asia. — Sapa-AP