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Posts Tagged ‘Mt Merapi’

Mass Evacuations in Indonesia as Mt Kelud Erupts

Posted by feww on February 14, 2014

VOLCANIC HAZARDS
MASS EVACUATIONS
.

Volcano alert urged 200,000 people to evacuate before eruption

Ash and other volcanic matter ejected by the 1,730-meter Mt Kelud has covered a vast area, including the major city of Surabaya, more than 130km (80 miles) away.

During its most violent eruption on Thursday night, the volcano ejected ash and volcanic gases to a hight of 17km above the summit crater, according to officials.

Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city with a population of more than 3.5 million (6 million in the metropolitan area), is the capital of East Java province.

The major eruption, which ejected ash in all directions as far as 250-km away, forced the closure of three international airports in Surabaya, Solo and Yogyakarta.

mt kelud java - photo mia puspitasari
Mt Kelud erupts in East Java, Indonesia. Image credit:

Kelud eruption 2014 ash raining in YogyakartaVolcanic ash raining on the city of Yogyakarta (metro Population 2.4 million), Java after Mt Kelud eruption.  Image Credit:Aldnonymous

Officials had urged about 200,000 people in 36 villages within the 10-km radius of the crater to evacuate 90 minutes before the eruption, according to reports.

There are UNCONFIRMED reports of multiple deaths within the evacuation zone.

A Thick Blanket of Volcanic Ash 

“The current conditions are that volcanic ash is now covering the runway, apron and tarmac. We have already measured the thickness of the volcanic ash, which is at  on the runway and tarmac,” said a senior official at the Yogyakarta airport.


Mt Kelud (Kelut) is located in East Java, Indonesia. Kelud is one of Indonesia’s 130  active volcanoes.  The volcano last erupted in 1990, killing at least 40 people. A powerful explosion in 1919 left more than  5,000 dead.

Indonesian Volcanoes

Indonesian Volcanoes have been responsible for a number of cataclysmic explosions in modern history.

Krakatoa [Krakatau] Cataclysmic Eruption 1883

ashcroft -riv thames
William Ashcroft painting “On the Banks of the River Thames” in London, November 26, 1883 [Exactly three months after Krakatoa’s cataclysmic 1883 eruption.]

The Krakatoa eruption affected the climate driving the weather patterns wild for the next 5 years. Average global temperatures fell by about 1.2 °C in the following years, returning to normal only in 1888.

The eruption ejected about 21 cubic kilometers of volcanic matter and destroyed two-thirds of the Krakatoa island. The explosion also spawned giant tsunamis killing an estimated 40,000 people.

Karakatoa
An 1888 lithograph of the 1883 violent explosion of Krakatau.

Based on their models, our colleagues at EDRO forecast that the collapse of Singapore may occur as a result of volcanic activity on the island of Sumatra. However, they have not disclosed any further detail.

Mt Sinabung

Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province has been erupting since November 2013 forcing the evacuation of more than 30,000 people. During an unexpected eruption earlier this month at least 16 people were killed.

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A Second Indonesian Volcano Erupts

Posted by feww on November 19, 2013

Mt Merapi eruption follows multiple explosions at Mt Sinabung

“Mount Merapi experienced a phreatic eruption. Its status remains normal due to a lack of activity,” said Yogyakarta’s Geological Disaster Technology Development and Research Agency (BPPTKG).

On November 16, 2013 FIRE-EARTH warned: 22 Indonesian Volcanoes Remain on High Alerts

Mt Merapi was placed on “Yellow Alert,” or “Level II” of the country’s 4-level alert system, on August 3, 2013.

Mt merapi
Latest Image of Mt Merapi. Credit: Badan Geologi.

“On Monday at 4:52 a.m. before the eruption, BPPTKG detected an earthquake in Ciamis, West Java, at a magnitude of 4.7 on the Richter scale. The tectonic quake is believed to have shaken the magma chamber of Mount Merapi causing it to release gas from below,” said BPPTKG spokesperson.

Merapi ejected volcanic materials about 2 kilometers into the air showering a 60-km radius area east of the volcano with ash, said the report.

The authorities have since imposed 1-kilometer exclusion zone around the volcano base.

The phreatic eruption on Monday was similar to one on July 22, said National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman. “But today’s was more powerful than the July 22 eruption.”

More than 600 families living in Kalitengah Lor, Kalitengah Kidul and Srune hamlets, in Glagaharjo village, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, have been evacuated.

Hundreds of other villagers living on the western flank of Mount Merapi also fled their homes.

“The volcanic ash also affected residents in nearby towns. In Surakarta, Central Java, residents were shocked by the sight of volcanic ash covering streets, gardens and roofs. The ash rain continued until around 10 a.m. on Monday.” said the report.

“Surowedanan village in Boyolali, located around 17 km from the peak of Mount Merapi, was also covered by volcanic ash. ‘This morning, when I went out of the house at around 5 a.m., I saw ash everywhere,’ said Veronica Maria Sayektiana, of Surowedanan. According to Veronica, residents were wearing masks when they ventured out of their homes as the ash was still falling along with the drizzle.”

Merapi eruptions have killed hundreds of people in the past couple of decades.

Mount Merapi is one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia. The 2010 its eruptions killed more than 300 people dead and forced about 400,000 people to evacuate their towns, while a 1930 eruption left at least 1,300 dead.

Mt Sinabung Update

The Indonesian ministry of transportation has diverted all flights to avoid routes near Mt Sinabung, located in Karo District, North Sumatra, which has erupted multiple times since last week.

The authorities say Mt Sinabung eruption on November 12 ejected  volcanic material that covered five districts destroying some 1,893 hectares of citrus plantations in Tanah Karo, which has impacted fruit production, said a report.

The explosive activity follows a series of most recent eruptions exhibited by the 2,460-meter high volcano that began in September 2013, leading to a significant eruption on October 24, which saw the volcano spewing smoke and ash to a height of about 3km above the crater summit, followed by other eruptions, especially the explosive eruption that occurred on Sunday, November 3.

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State of Emergency Declared in Cinque Terre, Italy

Posted by feww on October 28, 2011

Village of Monterosso no longer exists: The Mayor

Flooding and mudslides destroy at least two of the five World Heritage-listed ‘Cinque Terre’ villages.

Storms buffeted portions of Italy’s NW coastal regions of Liguria and Tuscany Tuesday, causing severe flash floods and mudslides, destroying at least two of the five Cinque Terre villages and leaving more than a dozen people  dead or missing.

Disaster Calendar 2011 – October 28

[October 28, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,601 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

  • Liguria [and Tuscany,] Italy. Flash flooding and mudslides in the fishing villages of Cinque Terre, located in the mountainous portion of Italian Riviera, has obliterated two of the five communities.
    • The two villages of Vernazza and Monterosso have all but been wiped out by torrents of mud and water poured down from the hills behind them.

    • “Monterosso no longer exists,” Angelo Betta the village mayor told reporters, describing the event as an “unimaginable disaster.”

    • Cinque Terre [“The Five Lands”] is composed of five villages: Corniglia, Manarola, Monterosso al Mare,  Riomaggiore and Vernazza.
    • The villages and surrounding area are listed as a a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
    • The villages were cut off after flooding and mudslides destroyed the region’s  roads and bridges.
    • Hundreds of thousands of international tourists flock to the villages each year.

Other Global Disasters

  • Yogyakarta, Indonesia. A year after Mt. Merapi erupted, killing at least 300 people and destroying thousands of homes,   many thousands of people remain homeless, a report said.
    • “Tens of thousands of people were made homeless by the lahar and the imposition of a 20-kilometer exclusion radius around the volcano’s crater. A year later, many are still living in temporary shelters, despite government pledges to build them new homes in safer areas.”
    • “The eruptions last year displaced around 100 million cubic meters of volcanic ash around the mountain,” said the head of the Volcano Investigation and Technology Development Institution (BPPTK).

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Merapi’s latest eruption the deadliest so far

Posted by feww on November 5, 2010

The latest eruption of Mount Merapi volcano claims about 70 lives; hundreds more injured

Mt Merapi volcano’s latest salvo of eruptions began on October 26, 2010.  On Thursday, it blasted hot ash and poisonous volcanic fumes into the air, killing about 70 more people, reports say.

The blast has burned villages up to 15km (9 miles) from the summit crater.

Indonesian President Bambang  declared the eruption a national disaster on Friday. Up to 100,000 people have now abandoned dozens of villages on the slopes of the volcano. The death toll from the continual 10-day eruption has now climbed to at least 115.

Mt Merapi’s Eruption: Satellite Image


Download large image (2 MB, JPEG) — Image acquired November 1, 2010 – Posted on November 5, 2010.

ASTER on NASA’s Terra satellite captured the thermal signature of hot ash and rock and a glowing lava dome on October 30.  The thermal data is overlaid on a three-dimensional map of the volcano to show the approximate location of the flow. The three-dimensional data is from a global topographic model created using ASTER stereo observations.

Merapi shows no signs of slowing. After several days of eruptive episodes, the volcano began an eruption on November 3 that was five times more intense than on October 26 and lasted more than 24 hours. It is the most violent eruption at the volcano since the 1870s, said local geologists. (Source: NASA-EO).


Mt Sinabung, Krakatau and Merapi Volcanoes Location Map. Source of the original map: USGS. Map enhanced by Fire-Earth. Click image to enlarge.

Videos and more images are available at: HVO

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FEWW Volcanic Activity Forecast

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Latest Entries on Mt Merapi

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