The nation's Mount Semeru, the highest peak on the island of Java, has exploded, covering several villages with volcanic ash, leading to evacuations and leading authorities to raise the alert to the highest level.
The volcano in the province of East Java unleashed searing clouds of hot ash and a mixture of stone, molten rock, and gases that moved up to 7km down its sides several times from midday to dusk, while a dense plume of fiery clouds rose 2km into the sky, as stated by the nation's geological authority.
The outbursts that unfolded throughout the day compelled officials to raise the volcano’s alert level on two occasions, from the level three to the highest, the agency reported. No casualties have been announced.
Over three hundred residents in the three villages most endangered in the area of Lumajang were evacuated to government shelters, according to a representative for the national disaster mitigation agency.
He said that increased activity of the volcano on Wednesday afternoon prompted officials to expand the danger zone to 8km from the summit. Residents were advised to stay clear from an area along the Kobokan River, which is the path of the lava flow, as searing gas flowed down Semeru’s slopes.
Footage on social media displayed a thick plume of volcanic dust sweeping through a wooded ravine to a river beneath a overpass. Residents, some with faces smeared with ash and water, fled to temporary shelters or left for other safe areas.
Regional news outlets reported that emergency teams were facing challenges to save about 178 individuals stranded on the 12,060-foot peak at the Ranu Kumbolo monitoring post. The party comprised 137 hikers, 15 carriers, seven escorts and six tourism officials, according to an official with the protected area.
“They are currently safe at the Ranu Kumbolo station,” a spokesperson said in a recorded message. He said the post was located 2.8 miles from the crater on the northern slope of the volcano, which is outside the trajectory of the hot cloud flow that was seen traveling to the south-southeast. Bad weather and rain forced the group to spend the night there, he explained.
The volcano, also called Mahameru, has erupted numerous times in the past 200 years. Still, as is the situation with many of the 129 live volcanoes in the archipelago, thousands of people continue to live on its productive highlands.
Semeru’s last major eruption was in late 2021, when 51 individuals were killed and several hundred more were burned and settlements were submerged in layers of mud. The eruption led to the evacuation of over ten thousand people from their houses.
The country, an island chain of over 280 million people, is located along the Pacific seismic belt, a curved series of fault lines, and is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity.
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