JAKARTA – The threat from an Indonesian volcano that has erupted more than half a dozen times is not over, the archipelago’s top volcanology official told AFP, as the crater belched another ash tower on April 20.
Mount Ruang, in Indonesia’s outermost region of North Sulawesi province, started erupting late on April 16, prompting the authorities to evacuate thousands on islands near the stratovolcano and close the nearest international airport.
The volcano erupted again before midnight on April 19 and again on the afternoon of April 20, spewing an ash column 250m above its peak, the latest of a wave of volcanic activity, the volcanology agency said.
That led the authorities to warn that major eruptions could still take place, despite the crater calming since it stirred a spectacular mix of lava, ash and lightning earlier in the week, raining down molten rocks on nearby villages.
“With volcanic earthquakes recorded, this crisis is not over yet,” agency head Hendra Gunawan told AFP.
“It indicates magmatic fluid supply is still moving from the depth to the surface. So it’s not surprising if eruptions still occur.”
The volcano, with a peak 725m above sea level, is currently the only one of Indonesia’s more than 100 volcanos at the highest alert level of a four-tiered system.
The authorities have kept a 6km exclusion zone around the volcano.
More than 6,000 residents of neighbouring Tagulandang island, home to around 20,000 people, were evacuated outside the exclusion zone, a local official said on April 19.
The authorities previously estimated that more than 11,000 people would need to be evacuated because of the threat of volcanic rocks, hot clouds and lava flows.
Residents were advised to wear masks to avoid respiratory problems.
The stratovolcano’s latest activity also prompted the authorities to extend the closure of Sam Ratulangi International Airport in the provincial capital of Manado, more than 100km away.
The airport, initially set to reopen on April 20, will remain closed until April 21 as volcanic ash from Mount Ruang was detected around it, said Manado region airport authority head Ambar Suryoko.
Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activities due to its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”. AFP
