The Indonesian Disaster Management Agency said in a statement that Mount Merapi erupted today, Saturday, releasing a hot cloud up to seven kilometers high. Local authorities said the volcano, located in the special area of Yogyakarta, erupted around 12:00 local time (05:00 GMT). the lava flow was visible at a distance of 1.5 kilometers.
The statement said that residents of the area near the volcano were warned to stop all activities in dangerous zones, which have a radius of three to seven kilometers around the crater.
At 2963 meters high, Merapi is one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia and is already the second most dangerous volcano in the country.
A representative of the local monitoring center said that none of the residents were evacuated.
“This happened only once, when there were five or six landslides. If the flows continue to increase and spread over a distance of more than seven kilometers, people may be advised to evacuate,” he added.
Indonesia is located in a seismically active region called the Pacific Ring of Fire and therefore has more volcanoes than any other country. The last major eruption of Merapi occurred in 2010, killing more than 350 people.
