After the eruption of Mount Sammaru, Indonesia’s highest volcano on the island of Java, on December 5, authorities raised the alert level, imposing a no-go zone for thousands of residents in East Java province within an eight-kilometer radius of the volcano and evacuating residents of villages near the volcano.
Search and rescue teams have been dispatched to areas around the worst-hit areas of the Sammaru eruption, East Java’s search and rescue agency spokesman Tholib Batilihan told Reuters.
“After yesterday’s eruption, the rainfall level has increased. Because of this, objects from the top of the volcano fall to the foot of the mountain. But today it is safe to say that it is not raining anymore,” he said.
There were no reports of casualties due to the eruption, and air traffic was not disrupted.
The 3,676-meter-high volcano erupted on December 4. According to videos recorded by local residents, ash from the crater spread into the air, and the nearby rice fields, roads Ash fell on the bridges and the sky turned black.
In a video shared on Twitter by Indonesia’s Ministry of Environment, lava, Rocks and hot gas can be seen falling down the mountainside.
Residents living near the volcano were evacuated on motorbikes, and nearly 2,500 people were displaced, authorities said.
Indonesia’s Volcanological and Geological Hazards Mitigation Agency has raised the alert level for the Sammaru volcano to the highest level.
The agency also warned residents not to enter within eight kilometers or 500 meters of the volcano due to the danger of lava.
Last year, Mount Sammarumi erupted, killing more than 50 people and leaving thousands homeless. The eruption in East Java comes after a series of earthquakes, including one that killed more than 300 people last month in West Java province on the island of Java.
