Indonesia evacuates villagers as volatile Mount Merapi volcano rumbles
- About 300 people from two villages, mostly the elderly, pregnant women and children, were taken to emergency shelters, says a local disaster mitigation official
- Authorities have warned that Merapi could erupt at any time, possibly sending hot gas clouds down its slopes up to 5 kilometres
The head of Yogyakarta’s Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center, Hanik Humaida, warned that Merapi, Indonesia’s most active volcano, could erupt at any time, possibly sending hot gas clouds down its slopes up to 5 kilometres (3 miles).
Edy Susanto, a local disaster mitigation agency official, said about 300 people from two villages, mostly the elderly, pregnant women and children, were taken to emergency shelters in Central Java’s Magelang district.
Susanto said emergency measures to evacuate people living within 6km (3.7 miles) of the crater’s mouth were being prepared as local administrations in Central Java and Yogyakarta provinces closely monitor the situation.
On Thursday, Indonesia’s geological agency raised Merapi’s alert level to the second-highest level after sensors picked up increased activity.