Eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Ibu forces seven villages to evacuate
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Lightning appears amid a storm as Mount Ibu spews volcanic material during an eruption, as seen from Gam Ici in West Halmahera.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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JAKARTA – A volcano on the remote Indonesian island of Halmahera has spectacularly erupted, spewing a grey ash cloud into the sky, causing the evacuation of people from seven nearby villages
Mount Ibu erupted on the evening of May 18, sending ash 4km high, as streaks of purple lightning flashed around its crater, according to information and images shared by Indonesia’s volcanology agency.
A joint team comprising police, military and search-and-rescue officials was dispatched to the area to evacuate residents from surrounding villages, said Mr Abdul Muhari from the disaster mitigation agency, in a statement.
Photos shared by the disaster agency showed workers assisting the elderly, while other residents were moved in pick-up trucks and accommodated in emergency tents for the night.
The agency did not provide any information about how many people had been moved, but authorities have recommended that a 7km radius be cleared.
Indonesia's volcanology agency raised the alert level of the volcano to the highest level on May 16, after Ibu erupted multiple times earlier in May.
Ibu’s activities follow a series of eruptions of different volcanoes in Indonesia, which sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and has 127 active volcanoes.
Flash floods and cold lava flow from Mount Marapi
In recent weeks, North Sulawesi’s Ruang volcano has also erupted, spewing incandescent lava. The eruption prompted authorities to evacuate more than 12,000 people on a nearby island. REUTERS
