JAKARTA: Indonesia’s Mount Merapi unleashed a torrent of hot clouds, turning the sky a fiery red, as molten lava flowed down its slopes on Thursday with the eruption forcing over 250 people to flee their homes, authorities said.
Indonesia’s Geological Disaster Technology Research and Development Centre (BPPTKG) said the steep stratovolcano erupted 17 times from yesterday at 11.18 pm western Indonesian time until 7.33 am today.
The heightened volcano activity forced residents to flee to temporary shelters, BPPTKG head Hanik Humaida said at the online briefing.
Residents living on Merapi’s slopes are being warned to stay between three and seven kilometres radius of the peak of the mountain to avoid any possible danger.
Indonesia’s most active volcano near Yogyakarta is currently in the status of Alert Level III, so it has a high probability of erupting.
And, an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.1 jolted 36 km SW of Meulaboh, Indonesia at 04:26:53 GMT on Thursday, the US Geological Survey said.
According to Xinhua, the epicentre, with a depth of 50.44 km, was initially determined to be at 3.8882 degrees north latitude and 95.9188 degrees east longitude.
Its last major eruption in 2010 killed more than 300 people and forced the evacuation of around 280,000 residents from surrounding areas.
That was its most powerful explosion since 1930, which killed around 1,300 people. An eruption in 1994 left about 60 people dead.
The Southeast Asian archipelago nation is home to nearly 130 active volcanoes.
* Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss.
* Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.