Eastern Indonesia suffered another volcanic eruption, seeing a giant column of ash rise to a height of nine kilometres, but there were no reports of damage to nearby villages from the new eruption.
The Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki, a 1,703-metre-high, two-vertical volcano, has erupted more than a dozen times this week. On Friday, a powerful eruption forced staff at a nearby observation post to evacuate due to ash and small rocks falling on them. On Thursday, the mountain ejected a column of ash eight kilometres high, while on Thursday locals said it was one of the largest ash columns they had ever seen. The latest eruption on Saturday came days after an eruption killed nine people and evacuated thousands of locals.
“The ash column was observed at approximately 9,000 metres above the summit. The ash column appeared grey with thick intensity,” the country’s volcanology agency said in a statement about the eruption that began at 04:47 local time (2047 GMT). The agency warned residents to remain alert to the potential for cold lava floods due to heavy rainfall.
The head of Indonesia’s disaster management agency said authorities would temporarily house and finance local residents while new homes are built. “Since the preparation and planning process for relocation takes time, we hope we can build them quickly,” stated Suharyanto, who goes by one name, on a visit to a shelter Friday.
