Indonesia Evacuates Thousands After Volcano Erupts

Indonesia evacuates thousands after volcano erupts, according to reports and local authorities.

After a volcano erupted five times on Thursday, forcing authorities to close a nearby airport and issue a warning about falling debris that could cause a tsunami, Indonesian rescuers rushed to evacuate thousands of people.

After erupting four times on Wednesday, pushing an ash column more than a mile into the sky and forcing authorities to raise the alert level to the highest of a four-tiered system, Mount Ruang’s crater flamed with lava against a backdrop of lightning bolts overnight.

A fiery orange column was released by the crater while Taka, a local fisherman who only went by one name, was at sea assisting people to safety via boat.

“A mixture of rocks and fire was present. Different directions were filled with lava,” He revealed.

According to officials, the volcano, which is located on a secluded island in Indonesia’s most remote area and has a summit 725 meters above sea level, was still spewing smoke on Thursday morning up to 800 meters (2,625 feet) high.

Rescuers reported that on Thursday, falling volcanic rocks had left holes in houses on the nearby remote island of Tagulandang, and residents were getting ready to leave, if only temporarily.

“Volcanic material is covering the current condition, particularly the road condition,” local rescuer Ikram Al Ulah told AFP over the phone from the seaport in Tagulandang.

“A lot of people are still getting lost right now. Perhaps to remove valuables from their home.”

Authorities stated they were hurrying to evacuate over 11,000 residents from the vicinity of Tagulandang, which is home to about 20,000 people, even though there were no reports of fatalities or injuries.

Officials said that some residents were already attempting to escape in a panic.

“Due to the volcano’s eruption and… small rocks that fell, people evacuated on their own but without direction,” local search and rescue agency official Jandry Paendong said in a statement on Thursday.

“The people scattered to find evacuation routes.”

He said that twenty employees were using rubber boats to assist in the evacuation of residents along the volcano’s coastline.

According to Ikram, authorities evacuated a prison on Tagulandang island, ferrying 17 inmates, 11 officials, and 19 residents by boat to Likupang seaport in northern Sulawesi.

According to the rescuer, the prison chief requested the evacuation because the facility is located directly across from the volcano.

Tourists and residents were warned to stay outside a six-kilometre exclusion zone.

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