JAKARTA, Indonesia—A volcano erupted in Indonesia on Dec. 4, spewing a cloud of ash 15 kilometers (nearly 50,000 feet) into the sky and forcing the evacuation of nearly 2,000 people, according to authorities, who issued their highest warning for the area in the east of Java island.
There were no immediate reports of any casualties from the eruption of the Semeru volcano, and Indonesia’s Transport Ministry stated that there was no impact on air travel, but notices had been sent to two regional airports for vigilance.
“Most roads have been closed since this morning, and now it is raining volcanic ash, and it has covered the view of the mountain,” community volunteer Bayu Deny Alfianto told Reuters by telephone from near the volcano.
Semeru, the tallest mountain on Java, erupted last year, killing more than 50 people and displacing thousands.
Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency stated that 1,979 people had been moved to 11 shelters and that authorities had distributed masks to residents. Rescue, search, and evacuation efforts have been ongoing since the eruption began.
The volcano’s plume of ash reached a height of 50,000 feet (15 kilometers), according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, which had initially been on alert for the possibility that the volcano could trigger a tsunami. It later ruled that out.
The eruption, which occurred roughly 640 kilometers (400 miles) east of the capital, Jakarta, follows a series of earthquakes in the west of Java, including one last month that killed more than 300 people.
Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, PVMBG, raised the level of volcanic activity to its highest level and warned residents to not approach within eight kilometers (five miles) of Semeru’s eruption center.
Hot ash clouds had drifted nearly 12 miles (19 kilometers) from the center of the eruption, it stated.
PVMBG chief Hendra Gunawan said a bigger volume of magma could have built up compared with previous eruptions of the volcano in 2021 and 2020, which could mean greater danger for a bigger area.
“Semeru’s hot clouds could reach further and at a distance where there are many residences,” he said.
In a video sent to Reuters by police in the area, villagers were seen moving away from the slopes of the volcano, some with belongings stacked on motorbikes. A damaged bridge was covered in volcanic ash.
With 142 volcanoes, Indonesia has the world’s largest population living in close range to a volcano, with 8.6 million people within 10 kilometers (six miles) of one.
The deadly late-November quake that hit West Java was 5.6 magnitude but at a shallow depth. A 6.1 quake struck at a deeper depth on Dec. 3, sending people running from buildings, but it didn’t cause major damage or casualties.
