Indonesia’s Semeru volcano erupts, alert level raised to highest

The volcano has spewed ash clouds arsenic gangly arsenic 5.6km (3.48 miles) into the sky, authorities say.

Indonesia’s Semeru volcano has erupted, unleashing fast-moving pyroclastic flows arsenic the country’s volcanology bureau accrued the alert level of Java island’s tallest upland to the highest.

The volcano spewed ash clouds arsenic gangly arsenic 5.6km (3.48 miles) into the sky, the bureau said connected Wednesday, adding that residents should enactment a 2.5km (1.55-mile) region distant owed to risks.

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The eruption began astatine astir 4pm (09:00 GMT), according to a written study from Mukdas Sofian, an serviceman astatine Indonesia’s volcanology monitoring post.

“Pyroclastic flows are inactive occurring, with the runout region reaching 7 kilometres [4.3 miles] from the summit, and the eruption was ongoing astatine the clip this study was prepared,” Sofian said.

Mount Semeru, located successful a densely populated portion of Java, is Indonesia’s highest highest astatine 3,676 metres (12,060 feet) and sits connected the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, a seismically progressive arc wherever volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are common.

Semeru, besides known arsenic Mahameru, has erupted galore times successful the past 200 years, including a deadly occurrence successful 2021 that killed 62 radical and buried villages successful blistery ash.

Indonesia is location to nearly 130 progressive volcanoes – much than immoderate different country, and Semeru’s predominant enactment is intimately monitored due to the fact that of the risks it poses to adjacent communities, transport routes and aviation.