Jakarta, Indonesia – A volcano in Indonesia recently experienced a series of powerful and explosive eruptions, raising concerns about a possible tsunami.
Mount Ruang on Tagulandang Island, one of the Sangihe Islands off the north coast of Sulawesi, has erupted at least five times since Tuesday, the Volcanological Survey of Indonesia said. Lava is emanating from the crater as ash plumes are believed to have reached the stratosphere several kilometers into the air. There are no reports of deaths or injuries.
On Thursday, the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Management (PVMBG) raised the alert status of Mount Ruang to the highest possible level. This was due to a significant increase in both visual activity and seismicity.
INDONESIA’S RUANG VOLCANO OUTBREAKS AS HUNDREDS EVACUATED UNDER SPRAYING LAVA AND ASH CLOUDS
The Sitaro Regency government ordered the mandatory evacuation of 828 local residents to prevent the life-threatening situation.
“The static population of residents at the site should be at least 11,000 people requiring temporary evacuation,” Abdul Muhari, head of BNPB’s Disaster Data, Information and Communications Center, said at a virtual press conference early Thursday morning.
Officials are concerned that part of the volcano could collapse, causing a dangerous tsunami like those that have occurred in the past. Those close to the coast have also been advised to remain vigilant for glowing rocks erupting and hot clouds rising.
The port of Manado witnessed a flurry of activity on Thursday morning as Indonesian military personnel loaded essential food items for evacuees and first responders onto a large ship before heading to the active volcano site.
On Wednesday morning, Mount Ruang experienced more than 400 volcanic earthquakes and several eruptions throughout the evening. According to Hendra Gunawan, head of Indonesia’s volcanology bureau, these eruptions resulted in eruptions of lava or hot clouds that reached heights of almost three kilometers.
Some airlines had to cancel their flights to nearby regions due to the spread of volcanic ash. Fortunately, Malaysia Airlines was able to resume its flights on Thursday. AirAsia, on the other hand, said it will resume travel operations as soon as the airspace is deemed safe.
Indonesia, located in Southeast Asia And Oceania, is known to straddle the ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’. This region is characterized by intense seismic activity and lies atop multiple tectonic plates, including the Pacific Plate, the Philippine Plate, and the Australian Plate.
The movement of these plates has led to numerous volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis throughout Indonesia history.
Because of its location here geological active region, Indonesia is considered one of the most seismically active countries in the worldwith a high risk of natural disasters.
Original article source: Concerns about a partial collapse of Indonesia’s erupting Mount Ruang are raising concerns about a possible tsunami
