Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

[Snowy Owl]

Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt


JAKARTA, Indonesia:

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/09/30/asia/AS-GEN-Indonesia-Volcano.php

Thousands of people were set to be evacuated from the slopes of an Indonesian volcano Sunday as scientists warned that heightened activity signaled it could erupt.


The alert on Mount Kelud, about 620 kilometers (385 miles) east of the capital Jakarta, was raised to the second-highest level after sensors on its slopes picked up increased activity and a buildup of gases, said Surono, a senior government vulcanologist who goes by one name.


The 1,731-meter (5,679-foot) mountain was hotter and emitted three times more carbon dioxide than normal, prompting authorities to make preparations to evacuate about 24,000 people living just outside a danger zone, he said.


"There is a possibility of a major eruption, but it is not imminent," Surono said, adding that villagers and tourists had already been told to stay away from a 5-kilometer (3-mile) danger zone around a popular green lake near its peak.


Mount Kelud, one of the most active volcanoes in the world's largest archipelagic nation, last erupted in 1990.

 

[Niko]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Tents, vehicles readied for feared Indonesian volcanic eruption

23 hours ago

JAKARTA (AFP) ? Indonesian officials and volunteers pitched tents and assembled evacuation vehicles Friday amid fears that a volcano in densely populated East Java could soon erupt, local officials there said.

"We are setting up a number of tents in Karang Rejo village located some 10 kilometres (six miles) from the crater in case of eruption," local official Tri Setyoko told AFP.

Setyoko added that more than 30 off-road vehicles were also ready to evacuate residents if activity at simmering Mount Kelut escalated further.

Residents were advised last Sunday to maintain a five-kilometre safety zone around the 1,731-metre (5,712-feet) peak and told to prepare to evacuate at the first sign of any eruption.

Evacuation drills were held in the area on Thursday.

Agung Budianto, a volcanologist monitoring Mount Kelut, said a minor volcanic tremor early Friday indicated that magma was starting to push towards the crater's surface, but it was not a significant shift yet, he said.

Based on current conditions, the volcanology office would maintain its current alert at the third of a four-tier system, he added.

A fourth tier alert means an eruption could be imminent.

Mount Kelut last blew in 1990. The volcano has claimed more than 15,000 lives since 1500, including around 10,000 when it erupted in 1568.

Although its immediate slopes are sparsely inhabited, the peak is a popular domestic tourist destination and it is located on a heavily populated plain.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5j1VJMeow9c2vlUUJnzdf_nAtJ_9g

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Indonesia raises alert level at volcano, orders evacuation

JAKARTA (AP): Indonesia warned Tuesday that one of its most deadly volcanos was poised to erupt and ordered nearly 30,000 villagers on the mountain's slopes to evacuate.

Mount Kelud, which has been rumbling for weeks, was placed on the highest alert level, meaning scientists believe a major eruption is imminent, said a posting on the government-run volcanology center Web site.

The status requires local authorities to evacuate people living on the slopes.

Surono, a top scientist at the center, said that all people living within 10 kilometers of the peak must evacuate. Surono, who goes by a single name, said authorities late Tuesday had begun transporting some people out of the danger zone.

The 1,731-meter Mount Kelud is one of the most active volcanoes in the world's largest archipelagic nation. It last erupted in 1990, destroying a hundred villages and killing 5,160 people.

The mountain is on Java island about 620 kilometers east of the capital, Jakarta.

The volcano's explosive activity typically starts with a steam explosion - when surfacing magma meets ground water. Such eruptions produce hot mud flows and pyroclastic surges and flows.

Evacuation orders at Indonesian volcanoes are often patchily enforced. Without compensating farmers for loses to crops or livestock, it is difficult to force them to leave their villages. Another worry for homeowners is thieves targeting empty properties.

Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire" - a series of volcanoes and fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia. (***)

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailgeneral.asp?fileid=20071016220534&irec=0

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Villagers defy warnings and return to Indonesian volcano

MOUNT KELUD (AP): Thousands of villagers defied warnings of a major eruption at one of Indonesia's deadliest volcanos, leaving refugee centers Wednesday and returning to its slopes to tend to crops and animals.

Late Tuesday, tens of thousands fled or were evacuated from villages close to Mount Kelud after it was placed on the highest alert level, meaning scientists believe an eruption may be imminent.

The 1,731-meter volcano, which has been showing signs of an eruption for several weeks, last blew its top in 1990, killing dozens. In 1919, a powerful explosion destroyed a hundred villages and claimed 5,160 lives.

Local authorities began mandatory evacuations of more than 100,000 people living within 10 kilometers of the peak late Tuesday, a statement from the national disaster agency said.

It was unclear exactly how many people had left, but on Wednesday morning thousands left temporary evacuation camps by truck and motor bikes and returned to their villages, complaining they had received no food and saying they must tend crops, witnesses and officials said.

"There was no food at all," said Darmiashiah, a 33-year-old woman who returned to the village of Sugihwaras, well within in the evacuation zone. "If I get told to leave again, I will not go," said Darmiashiah.

Emergency coordinator Herry Noegroho promised more tents and food at refugee centers.

Unlike some volcanos, Mount Kelud does not smoke or rumble in the run up to an eruption.

Scientists say the temperature of its crater-lake is rising quickly and they have logged hundreds of volcanic earthquakes triggered deep inside the mountain, both signs an eruption may be imminent.

"It never shows its true nature," said government volcanologist Surono. "It is better to raise the status than see people killed."

Kelud is on Java island about 620 kilometers east of the capital, Jakarta.

Its explosive activity typically starts with a steam blast ? when surfacing magma meets ground water. Such eruptions produce hot mud flows and pyroclastic surges and flows.

Indonesia has 400 volcanoes, of which around 150 are active.

Evacuation orders are often patchily enforced. Without compensating farmers for loses to crops or livestock, it is difficult to force them to leave their villages. Another worry for homeowners is thieves targeting empty properties.

Many people were heeding the warning, however.

"I can still remember the last eruption," said 70-year-old Kasemi who was staying in a government building with dozens of other people. "It went dark because of the ash and the explosions were terrifying."

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailgeneral.asp?fileid=20071017150746&irec=1

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Hat tip Dutchy :tiphat:

Thursday 18 October 2007

Indonesian volcano may erupt

Jakarta - It is feared that an eruption of the Kelut volcano in East Java in Indonesia may be imminent. Tens of thousands of people have been advised to leave the area, but many are refusing to heed the warnings.

Kelut has become less active over the last 24 hours, but experts view this as an ominous sign. When the volcano last erupted in 1990, killing 34 people, a period on inactivity heralded the event.

The greatest danger during an eruption is thought to be a pyroclastic flow, a fast moving, super-heated cloud of gas, ash and rocks.

http://www.radionetherlands.nl/news/international/5479061/Indonesian-volcano-may-erupt

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Thanks Dutchy

Indonesia expert warns volcano still very dangerous

Thu Oct 18, 2007 5:45am BST

By Heri Retnowati

NGANCAR, Indonesia, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Indonesia remained on high alert on Thursday for a possible eruption of a rumbling volcano in eastern Java, but many residents near Mount Kelud refused to leave their homes despite an order to evacuate.

The alert on the volcano, one of Indonesia's deadliest and located 90 km (55 miles) southwest of its second-largest city, Surabaya, was raised to maximum late on Tuesday, meaning it could erupt within 24 hours.

Authorities had ordered the evacuation of more than 100,000 people from a 10-km (6-mile) zone near the 1,731-metre (5,712-foot) volcano.

But many locals have refused to go, reluctant to leave possessions untended and complaining about inadequate food and shelter provided in safer zones.

"Why should I evacuate? We were not tended to yesterday, why would it be any different today?," said Mariyatun, a resident from the village of Sugihwaras.

Sugihwaras, located 7 km from the crater, suffered major losses during an eruption in 1990. More than a hundred of its residents died and lava destroyed much of the village.

"The volcano is not going to erupt. I haven't seen the signs", added Mariyatun, who like many Indonesians uses one name.

Rescue officials knocked on every door on Wednesday night, urging villagers to go to the shelters, but the trucks brought to take people to shelters left empty.

Experts said the danger was certainly not over, despite a fall in the number of volcanic earthquakes since Tuesday.

"Magma is already very close to the surface and the temperature in the crater lake is rising. It is now over 37 degrees Celsius (98.6F), which is a sharp rise from the previous week," Saut Simatupang, an official at Indonesia's Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, told Reuters.

The official said the number of volcanic quakes had fallen from 532 on Tuesday to 151 on Wednesday. On Thursday morning, there had only been 16 quakes, he said.

A Reuters witness saw fine ash raining down for about an hour on Wednesday night in the village of Ngancar and health officials said that masks had been handed out in some areas.

Simatupang said the ash did not appear to have come from the latest seismic activity.

"We have not observed any clouds of ash coming down the slopes. That must have been strong wind coming from the east, carrying old ash lying on the edges of the crater," he said.

The official said a full eruption could mean that Surabaya was hit by ash clouds, depending on winds, although he said the impact on the industrial city should not be significant.

"But three districts within a radius of 10 kilometres will be severely affected," he said.

An estimated 350,000 people live within 10 km of the volcano and when it last erupted in 1990 at least 30 people were killed.

In 1919, about 5,000 died when Kelud ejected scalding water from its crater lake.

Indonesia, which sits on a belt of intense seismic activity known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, has had a series of major volcanic eruptions over the centuries. (Additional reporting by Adhityani Arga in Jakarta)

http://uk.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUKJAK82943._CH_.242020071018

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Indonesian Volcano Blast Expected

The Associated Press

Friday, October 19, 2007;

MOUNT KELUD, Indonesia -- Armed police forced tens of thousands of reluctant residents to leave the slopes of one of Indonesia's deadliest volcanos Friday amid warnings that an eruption was imminent.

The United Nations, meanwhile, sent aid workers and medical supplies to the area.

Scientists raised the alert at Mount Kelud to the highest level this week, pointing to rising temperatures and deep underground tremors. Authorities ordered 116,000 people living along the fertile slopes to evacuate, but many have refused, saying they wanted to tend to crops and herds.

"If we don't force them _ in this case with a showing of firearms _ the villagers would not budge, although we have repeatedly reminded them of the danger," said local police chief Col. Tjuk Basuki. "We had no choice but to do this for their safety."

Mount Kelud, on the densely populated island of Java, last erupted in 1990, killing dozens. In 1919, a powerful explosion, heard hundreds of miles away destroyed dozens of villages and killed 5,160 people.

The U.N. said Friday that the World Health Organization had activated 100 medics, put 200 health facilities on alert and established 41 outreach health posts. Emergency health kits, masks and essential equipment also were distributed.

Indonesia, which has about 150 active volcanos spread across 17,500 islands, sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" _ a series of volcanos and fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.

Mount Kelud is 385 miles east of the capital, Jakarta

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/19/AR2007101900321.html

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

No machine translation available

From Media Indonesia Online, october 19:

at 15.20 local time, looks like the beginning of an eruption,

white clouds appeared at Mount Kelud

8 journalist - still on the slopes - were sent away

http://www.mediaindo.co.id/main.asp

edit:

Video from 2 days ago, oct 17:

http://uncutvideo.aol.nl/videos/93c25f68ddc03b6501e0277d7b7f9505

Video from today, oct 19

http://www.liputan6.com/mediaplayer/?program=news&id=149402&m_id=666440

Map:

http://www.alertnet.org/thefacts/satelliteimages/119278180736.htm

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

21/10/2007 15:20

Update: earthquake in the region of Mt Kelud; situation volcano not changed.

Mountain in Blitar Mempengaruhi Aktivitas Kelud

Liputan6.com, Kediri: the Earthquake had the force of 5.4 Richter scales that shook west the Blitar power, East Java, Ahad (21/10) struck 06,40 WIB, did not influence the activity and the condition for the Kelud Mountain.

Was like this it was said Chairman Tim Tanggap of the Aktivitas Emergency of the Kelud Kristianto Mountain.

According to Kristianto. the condition for the Kelud Mountain was not different against days beforehand.

The earthquake resulting from the activity of the crater still was happening.
The temperature of the crater also still was staying high that is in the range 38 Celcius levels.

Secara the theory, all that was the sign of the mountain will erupt.

The team of Vulcanology and Mitigasi Bencana Geologi, Bandung, West Java still could not till at this time dismiss the last data the matter of the Kelud activity.

That definitely, still there are those that must be worried because tren the temperature that continued to increase.

Although increasingly worrying, Sugihwaras villagers in the Kelud slope continue to perform activities as usual.

Some residents claimed anxious and hoped immediately had the assurance of the matter of exploding or not of Kelud.

Because with this uncertainty his activity was hindered and blew in the production.

The resident also reluctantly was evacuated because of wanting to be on duty at the house and to treat the livestock.

The other reason, the life in the evacuation was not as comfortable in the house like from the aspect of ate.

It is not surprising that the volunteer made an effort to alleviate the burden of casualties by providing the varying menu so that not bosa.

Each refugee got the side dish menu and vegetables with a value of Rp 3,500 as far as Rp 5,000 of each time ate.

Up to now had 800 residents who fled in the Segaran Village Hall, Wates.
Adapula belasan thousand other fled in the place was different from the condition an existence.

http://www.liputan6.com/daerah/?id=149493

 

[Niko]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

21/10/07 09h33 GMT+1 AFP News brief

<!-- Title --> Indonesian volcano eruption risk remains high: scientists
<!-- Author --><!-- intro --><!-- Filename : /templates/generic/includes/actionBarAfp.jsp --><!-- Subtitle --><!-- Text --> The risk of eruption at an Indonesian volcano on Java island remains high but it appears no nearer blowing, residents and scientists said Sunday.

"There have been no significant changes compared to yesterday (Saturday). Nothing much happening except for some quakes," volcanologist Agus Budianto said of Mount Kelut in Indonesia's densely populated East Java province.

He said temperatures at the crater have remained stable but he warned that the risks of a sudden eruption remained high, as sensors continued to register increasing magmatic pressure within the volcano.

Five volcanic tremors and two tectonic earthquakes were registered in the area in the first six hours of Sunday, said another volcanologist, Umar, from a monitoring station 7.5 kilometres (4.5 miles) from the crater.

Local authorities on Sunday continued evacuations of people living within a 10-kilometre radius of the 1,731-metre (5,712-foot) peak.

"There are a total of some 90,000 people living on the slope of Kelut within radius of 10 kilometres from the crater. They are currently being evacuated," said Kamtono, a spokesman of the Blitar district authorities.

Kamtono said that temporary shelters have been set up at 37 locations outside the danger zone.

About 1,000 people in a hamlet seven kilometres from the peak refused to leave, saying the temporary shelters would not have everything they need.

**snipped**

http://www.france24.com/france24Pub...p-news.html?id=071021083243.h8lfz2vu&cat=null

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Villagers told deadly Indonesian volcano still could erupt

MOUNT KELUD, East Java (AP): The threat of an eruption at one of Indonesia's deadliest volcanos remains high despite a slowdown in activity over last 24 hours, a government vulcanologist said Monday, as frustration mounted among tens of thousands of villagers forced to flee its slopes.

The alert level at Mount Kelud was raised to its highest level one week ago following a series of powerful underground tremors and sharply rising temperatures in the lake of its crater, which has turned from turquoise to white as sulfur levels increased.

But there has been no major activity since Sunday, said Surono, a senior government vulcanologist, making it all the more difficult to convince evacuees to remain in makeshift refugee shelters near its base.

"We are still in a situation of high alert," he said, noting that Mount Kelud has a history of only large eruptions, never small. "Once it goes off, it will be big. This is why we keep reminding people they have to stay clear of the crater."

The last eruption of Mount Kelud in 1990 killed more than 30 people and injured hundreds. In 1919, a powerful explosion that could be heard hundreds of kilometers away destroyed dozens of villages and killed at least 5,160 people.

Authorities have ordered 116,000 people living along the volcano's fertile slopes to leave their homes, but more than 12,000 refused, saying they needed to tend to their crops and animals and protect against possible looting.

Many of those forced to evacuate were losing patience, meanwhile. And money.

Suyatno, who earns US$1 a day picking cloves and coffee beans for a private plantation company, said he was eager to return to his village of Candi Sewu, five kilometers from Mount Kelud's peak.

"I can't wait any longer," said the 38-year-old father of three. "I have to work. I need money for my family." (***)

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailgeneral.asp?fileid=20071022122351&irec=2

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Update from Liputan6 SCTV

No machinetranslation available


Volcano expert Surono says (Monday oct 22, 16.00, local time):

magma is slowly coming up, now less than 1 kilometer under the crater;

temperature of the water in the crater lake still rising.

http://www.liputan6.com/news/?id=149555&c_id=7

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

MT KELUD ERUPTION MIGHT BE PHREATIC ONE

Jakarta 22/10/2007 (Kominfo-Newsroom) - Mt Kelud in East Java, based on study and observation, is most likely to erupt and eruption might be of the phreatic type ? producing a violent expulsion of steam following the interaction of water and heated volcanic rocks.

This was stated by Director General of Social Aid and Guarantee Chazali Situmorang here Monday (22/10) after monitoring Kelud?s type of eruption during a cycle of 15-20 years.

This is corroborated by the temperature of water in the volcano?s crater which stands at almost 40 centigrades.

?Only we cannot predict when the eruption will take place because unlike other volcanoes, Mt Kelud could suddenly erupt without showing evident sign of increased activities,? he added.

Apart from spouting water and mud from the crater, poisonous gas will be present.

But he assured that the government, I,e. the departments of social affair, health, public works, the police, the national coordinating agency and executing task force, is ready to manage the disaster.

A hundred tons of rice is now at the ready at regency and 200 tons at provincial level. The health department is ready to cope with any emergencies.

Some 200,000 masks will be made available to residents. The public works department will cope with lava stream.

In Kediri regency, 233,600 people will be evacuated and 261,612 more will be taken to safer areas from Blitar regency. (Az/toe

http://www.bipnewsroom.info/index.p...rd=&catid=87&&newsid=28566&_link=loadnews.php

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Detailed map:

http://www.alertnet.org/thefacts/satelliteimages/UNOSAT/351759af34ffef5976ab6e09f73c25f4.htm

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

25/10/2007 18:01

Activities of the Kelud Mountain begin to descend.

Liputan6.com, Kediri: till Thursday late afternoon (25/10), the status of the Kelud Mountain in Kediri, East Java, still be careful.

The team of Vulcanology and Mitigasi Bencana Geologi Bandung will evaluate till the next three days in order to determines the status of the mountain that berketinggian 1731 metre from the sea level.

The last data the team of the observer of the Kelud Mountain in Margomulyo, Ngancar, all day this five volcanic earthquake times happened shallow and twice the tremor earthquake.

Whereas the temperature of the crater lake in the depth 15 metre achieved 38.8 levels celcius.

The data showed in two today the activity of the Kelud Mountain begins to descend.

According to Ertanto, Kepala of the supervision Field and the Gunung Api Research, when the condition for the Mountain kelud continue to like today, the possibility of his status of descending became alert.

http://www.liputan6.com/news/?id=149720&c_id=7

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Level of alert went down today

machinetranslation

Peak of Kelud Mountain Clear

Together with the decline in the status Be Careful (the IV level) the Kelud Mountain became Alert (the III level) in three till the next four days, the peak of the Kelud Mountain on Thursday (25/10) were seen clear.

The decline in the status together with the fall of the intensity kegempaan in the Kelud Mountain several last days.

For the status Be Careful was appointed last October 16, to the earthquake crisis happen twice, that is in this date struck 12,00 until 17,00 WIB and on Friday afternoon (19/10) struck 16,00 to 16.55 WIB.


http://www.kompas.com/ver1/BeritaFoto/0710/25/203128.htm

 

[Niko]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

<table style="direction: ltr;" border="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td>Indonesian Volcano Erupts, No Damage Caused [not Mt. Kelud]</td></tr> <tr> <td valign="top"> By Trish Anderton
Jakarta
25 October 2007
</td> <td align="left" valign="top">
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> Anderton report (MP3) - Download 381k

Listen to Anderton report (MP3)

A volcano on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi has erupted, spewing a column of smoke and ash high into the air. But, officials say the activity at Mount Soputan does not present a threat to people living nearby. Meanwhile, villagers near Mount Kelud on Java island remain on alert for an eruption there. Trish Anderton reports from Jakarta.

All eyes have been on Java's Mount Kelud for the past two weeks, but it was Mount Soputan on the northern tip of Sulawesi that blew its top instead. Authorities say the volcano shot ash a thousand meters into the air, but no lava flowed from the mountain. Authorities say they are not planning to order an evacuation.

Agus Budianto of Indonesia's Centre for Vulcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation says his agency is advising people to avoid breathing the ash directly.

"I think it is not so dangerous right now but we recommend for the population to use a mask, if possible," he said.

The nearest village to Soputan is a relatively distant 11 kilometers from the peak. Some of Java's most dangerous volcanoes, including Mount Kelud, have populations much closer to their craters.

Budianto says scientists are continuing to monitor Soputan, but they do not expect a larger eruption.

"If the volcanic tremors happen continuously perhaps the eruption will occur," he said. "But there are no indications for that."

Meanwhile, authorities are keeping a close watch on Kelud, where a high alert has been in effect for several days. Local authorities have ordered more than 100,000 people evacuated from a 10-kilometer radius of the crater. But some residents are defying the order, saying they cannot leave their homes and farms unattended. About 5,000 people were killed when the volcano erupted in 1919.

Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are common in Indonesia, which is located in a geologically active area known as the Pacific Ring of Fire.


http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-10-25-voa10.cfm

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Increasing activities of another volcano :

the Krakatau. In Indonesian: "Anak Gunung Krakatau".

http://www.okezone.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=56358&Itemid=67

no translation available at this time.

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Three volcanoes simmering in Indonesia

Posted: 27 October 2007

BLITAR, Indonesia : Scientists in Indonesia closely monitored three simmering volcanoes across the disaster-prone nation Friday, including the offspring of infamous Krakatau off Sumatra island.

Ash has been spewing some 200 metres (yards) into the air since Tuesday at Anak Krakatau, or Child of Krakatau, the volcano left behind after Krakatau blew in 1883 and killed some 36,000 people, scientist Agus Budianto told AFP.

"We will issue a recommendation for visitors not to come close to Anak Krakatau, (to maintain) at least a three-kilometre (two-mile) distance," said Budianto, Indonesia's Volcanology and Geology Disaster Mitigation Centre.

Anak Krakatau forms part of a popular international tourist destination about 40 kilometres off Sumatra island. Visitors typically tour the waters around the volcano by boat.

Budianto said scientists were considering raising the alert status of the volcano a rung up on its four-tier system, but said the disaster potential of the volcano, being far offshore, was low.

Meanwhile, Mount Soputan on Sulawesi island spewed more smoke and lava, a day after the volcano, one of Sulawesi's most active, shot clouds of smoke 1,500 metres (one mile) into the air and lava down its slopes.

Scientist Jemmi Runtuwene, speaking from the volcano's monitoring post about 25 kilometres from its crater, said on Friday that the smoke column only reached 100 to 600 metres and that tremors were calmer compared to Thursday.

Residents living in the sparsely-populated surrounding areas have not been evacuated.

On Indonesia's main island of Java, Mount Kelut remained on red alert, meaning an eruption is feared at any time.

An advisory that the volcano could blow was issued on October 16 and sparked efforts to evacuate some 130,000 people living within 10 kilometres of its water-filled crater.

"The temperature of the crater lake is still recording a slight increase," said Sulis, a scientist at Kelut's monitoring post.

The rise indicates sustained volcanic activity and the risk of an eruption. More shallow and deep tremors caused by magma activity have also been recorded, he said.

Disaster management officials have had difficulties convincing locals that they face imminent danger, though many shelters are filling up at night.

An AFP correspondent in Blitar, one of the two districts straddling the volcano, said most evacuation shelters he visited on Friday were empty.

Kelut most recently erupted in 1990, sending searing gasses and volcanic debris rushing down its slopes that killed 34 people.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where continental plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity. The archipelago nation is home to 129 active volcanoes, including 21 on Java.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/308043/1/.html

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Thousands to be evacuated as Indonesian volcano threatens to erupt

Update from Liputan6 SCTV on Mountain Kelud (no machine translation available):

Volcanic acitivities slowed down.

Temperature water in crater lake still rising, till 39,9 Celsius now.

Children and older people stay in the shelters; during day time people go back to their fields and animals and shops to work there;
during the night many but not all come back to the shelters.


http://www.liputan6.com/daerah/?id=149905