An erupting volcano in Indonesia has spewed rivers of lava and despatched a plume of ash 50,000ft into the air, because the authorities raised the alert to its highest degree.
Hundreds of individuals dwelling near Mount Semeru in East Java have been evacuated to security.
Several villages had been blanketed with falling ash, blocking out the solar, however no casualties have been reported.
Residents have been warned to not go inside 5 miles (8km) of Indonesia’s highest volcano and maintain away from the lava circulate.
The 12,060ft peak, some 400 miles (640km) east of the capital Jakarta, erupted after monsoon rains eroded and eventually collapsed the lava dome, stated National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Abdul Muhari.
It additionally follows a sequence of earthquakes on the west of the island, together with one final month that killed greater than 300 folks.
Semeru’s final main eruption was in December final yr, which left 51 folks lifeless in villages that had been buried in layers of mud.
Several hundred others had been injured with critical burns, and the eruption pressured the evacuation of greater than 10,000 folks.
Semeru, often known as Mahameru, has erupted quite a few occasions within the final 200 years.
However, tens of 1000’s of individuals proceed to dwell on its fertile slopes.
With 142 volcanoes, Indonesia has the most important inhabitants globally dwelling near a volcano, together with 8.6 million folks inside six miles (10km).
The archipelago sits alongside the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, a horseshoe-shaped sequence of fault strains, and is liable to earthquakes and volcanic exercise.
Source: information.sky.com”