Lava spewing ‘like a ball of fire’
Indonesian officials have issued a red alert after Mount Sinabung on the island of Sumatra began spewing lava early Sunday morning.
Villagers ride a motorcycle while covering their mouths at the district of Tanah Karo outside the city of Medan, North Sumatra, as the Mount Sinabung volcano spews smoke in the background August 28, 2010. Credit: Reuters/Tarmizy Harva. Image may be subject to copyright.
The volcano had been spewing smoke and ash to a height of about 1.5km a.s.l. throughout Saturday, local reports said, quoting eye witnesses who saw lava spewing out of the volcano from 7 km away.
The authorities have evacuated up to 15,000 residents living near the volcano.
Mount Sinabung is one of Indonesia’s 130 active volcanoes, and had last erupted about 400 years ago.
The head of Indonesia’s vulcanology center was quoted by Reuters as saying:
“This is the first time since 1600 that Sinabung erupted [although there are no activities recorded] and we have little knowledge in terms on its eruptive patterns and general forms.”
The conical Sinabung volcano, seen here from the east, rises above farmlands on the Kato Plateau. Gunung Sinabung contains four summit craters, the southernmost of which is the youngest. Many prominent lava flows appear on the flanks of the volcano. No confirmed historical eruptions are known from Gunung Sinabung. Photo by Tom Casadevall, 1987 (U.S. Geological Survey). Caption: GVP
Sinabung Volcano: Summary of Details
Country: Indonesia
Region: Sumatra
Volcano Type: Stratovolcano
Volcano Status: Holocene
Last Known Eruption: Unknown [1600?]
Summit Elevation: 2,460m
Latitude: 3.17°N Longitude: 98.392°E
Source: GVP
Sinabung is located in Group K Volcanoes
Map of Volcanoes. Background Map: University of Michigan. Designed and enhanced by Fire Earth Blog. Click image to enlarge.
Sinabung volcano, seen from Gurukinayan village on the south, shows prominent lava flows on its flanks and a dramatic summit spine. The summit of Gunung Sinabung is much less frequently visited than neighboring Sabayak volcano to the NE. Photo by S. Wikartadipura, 1982 (Volcanological Survey of Indonesia). Source: GVP.
Approximate location of Sinabung is marked on the map by FEWW.
The volcano is located about 260km east of the epicenter of the 9.1 – 9.3Mw earthquake which struck off the coast of Sumatra on December 26, 2004, triggering the deadly Boxing Day Tsunami.
Related Links:
FEWW Volcanic Activity Forecast
Fire Earth 