Indonesian volcano erupts again
A new eruption of the Indonesian volcano has caused the death of 65 people today, only a week after a tsunami hit the isle of Sumatra.
The situation in Indonesia does not seem to get any better, after a latest eruption of Mount Merapi, not far from the city of Yogokarta, on the island of Java. According to ministerial declarations, the total death toll has now reached 109, with 150,000 evacuees from the area around the mountain.
The white ashes spit out of the crater fell for miles around the volcano. The authorities have been evacuating villages within a 20-km radius of the mountain.
The city of Yogokarta is filled with dust and grey smoke. Drivers have to keep the lights on during the day; the mist is thick and the air is unbreathable because of the gases coming out of the crater.
Yogokarta's international airport has been closed for days now, with all traffic directed to other cities on the island, mainly Solo.
Mount Merapi has been erupting since the beginning of the week, and local volcanologists say it is impossible to accurately predict “its behaviour.”
More than 200 people have been injured since the beginning of the eruptions.
Expert volcanologist Fred Witham said: “To predict an eruption, normally, you would measure the small quakes inside the volcano, caused by the movements of the magma. You would also measure the composition of the gas coming out of the crater.”
“Now, you can't measure gas and quakes while the volcano is erupting, for obvious reasons. So the instruments have to be kept far from the crater, which makes everything harder.”
Only last week a tsunami, triggered by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake, hit the Mentawai island off the coast of Sumatra, causing 431 deaths.
“There is some evidence that large earthquakes in the region may trigger eruptions in nearby volcanoes, but it's not clear if this is the case here,” added Mr Witham.
(Read the full article on The Fresh Outlook)
05.11.2010
The situation in Indonesia does not seem to get any better, after a latest eruption of Mount Merapi, not far from the city of Yogokarta, on the island of Java. According to ministerial declarations, the total death toll has now reached 109, with 150,000 evacuees from the area around the mountain.
The white ashes spit out of the crater fell for miles around the volcano. The authorities have been evacuating villages within a 20-km radius of the mountain.
The city of Yogokarta is filled with dust and grey smoke. Drivers have to keep the lights on during the day; the mist is thick and the air is unbreathable because of the gases coming out of the crater.
Yogokarta's international airport has been closed for days now, with all traffic directed to other cities on the island, mainly Solo.
Mount Merapi has been erupting since the beginning of the week, and local volcanologists say it is impossible to accurately predict “its behaviour.”
More than 200 people have been injured since the beginning of the eruptions.
Expert volcanologist Fred Witham said: “To predict an eruption, normally, you would measure the small quakes inside the volcano, caused by the movements of the magma. You would also measure the composition of the gas coming out of the crater.”
“Now, you can't measure gas and quakes while the volcano is erupting, for obvious reasons. So the instruments have to be kept far from the crater, which makes everything harder.”
Only last week a tsunami, triggered by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake, hit the Mentawai island off the coast of Sumatra, causing 431 deaths.
“There is some evidence that large earthquakes in the region may trigger eruptions in nearby volcanoes, but it's not clear if this is the case here,” added Mr Witham.
(Read the full article on The Fresh Outlook)
05.11.2010