A volcanic explosion has claimed at least 10 lives and forced the evacuation of several villages in eastern Indonesia, one of Australia’s closest neighbors.
Lava, volcanic ash and incandescent rocks erupted from Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki, a 1,703m twin volcano on Flores Island in East Nusa Tenggara province, around midnight on Sunday, around 3am on Monday AEDT .
His alert status has since been raised to level four, the highest.
“After the eruption, there was a power outage and then it was raining and large lightning bolts caused panic among residents,” said Hadi Wijaya, spokesman for the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation. Reuters.
The agency recommended that a 7 kilometer radius around the eruption site be cleared after lava and rocks hit settlements just 4 kilometers from the crater.
The eruption has not yet affected any Australian air routes, but the situation is being continuously monitored.
At least 10,000 people were affected by the eruption in Wulanggitang district and six nearby villages: Pululera, Nawokote, Hokeng Jaya, Klatanlo, Boru and Boru Kedang.
Authorities are still collecting data on the extent of the damage and the number of evacuees, but have confirmed that at least 10 people have died.
Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupted in eastern Indonesia around midnight Sunday local time.
Authorities are still collecting data on the extent of the damage and the number of evacuees, but confirmed that at least 10 people had died.
“We have started evacuating residents since this morning to other villages located about 20 kilometers from the crater,” said local official Heronimus Lamawuran.
The towns closest to the volcano were covered in thick volcanic ash. Several houses have been burned and damaged.
Indonesia is located on the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, an area of high seismic activity due to its position on multiple tectonic plates.
Sunday’s eruption was the latest in a series of volcano eruptions across Indonesia this year.
A volcano on the remote island of Halmahera, Mount Ibu, prompted the evacuation of seven villages in May.
Also in May, North Sulawesi’s Ruang volcano erupted, causing more than 12,000 people to flee the area.
Flash floods and cold lava flows from Mount Marapi in West Sumatra province hit several nearby districts, killing more than 60 people on May 11.
At least 10,000 people were affected by the eruption in Wulanggitang district and six nearby towns.
