Jakarta, Indonesia (CNN) -- A volcano that had been inactive
for more than 400 years erupted in Indonesia early Sunday, causing
thousands of people to flee their homes, officials said. Mount
Sinabung in North Sumatra province had been inactive since the 1600s,
but spewed volcanic ash nearly a mile into the air Sunday, said Surono,
head of the country's volcanology and geology agency. "We don't
know the character of this volcano because it's been dormant for so
long," he said. There were no reports of casualties or injuries.
"The situation is under control. Emergency response teams are
already on the scene," said Priyadi Kardono of the National Disaster
Management Agency. Officials have evacuated 12,000 residents
living in 14 villages near the volcano, which erupted just after 12:15
a.m. Sunday (1:15 p.m. ET Saturday), the official Antara news agency
reported. "We felt strong tremors last night. It was a volcanic
quake," Indonesian Red Cross worker Muhammad Isral told the agency.
"After that, the crater of Mount Sinabung spewed glowing lava. And trees
in the mount slopes were burnt. It was followed by thick clouds that
caused visibility to be only about five meters." On Saturday, the
Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation issued a
warning and ordered evacuation of a 6 km (3.7 miles) radius around the
volcano. Surano said investigators are monitoring and studying
the volcano. Based on the data they have now, he said, a large,
destructive eruption is unlikely. No hazardous
gas had been detected after Sunday's eruption, he said.
Sumber:
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/08/29/indonesia.volcano/?hpt=T1#fbid=6q0gS6p7nZH&wom=false
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