Increased activity spotted in two more volcanoes<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Bandung\/Padang\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Two volcanoes in the western part of the island of Java have
\nregistered increased activity on Wednesday, only a day after the
\nMt. Talang volcano erupted in West Sumatra, sparking fear that
\nmore terrifying natural disasters would soon rock the country.<\/p>\n
A government official imposed an alert status for Mt. Anak
\nKrakatau in the Sunda Strait on Wednesday morning after 32 mild
\nearthquakes rattled the volcano's crater. An alert status is
\nissued whenever a series of earthquakes in the area of a volcano
\noccurs, followed by an increase in temperature.<\/p>\n
\"Over the past two weeks, mild earthquakes have occurred two
\nto nine times a day, but suddenly today 32 earthquakes were
\nregistered,\" said Surono, a volcanology and geological disaster
\nmitigation official.<\/p>\n
Similarly, increased activity was also found in the Mt.
\nTangkuban Perahu volcano near Bandung, some hundreds of
\nkilometers east of Mt. Anak Krakatau. While on normal days
\nearthquakes from the volcano happened between two and seven times
\na day, on Wednesday 100 earthquakes were recorded, according to
\nSurono.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Government officials asked 150 local and foreign
\ntourists to stay away from the crater of Mt. Tangkuban Perahu.<\/p>\n
Kuswardi, the chief of a volcano observation post, said that
\nthe areas around the volcano had been closed to the public since
\n8 a.m. on Wednesday. \"We are afraid that the volcano will erupt
\nsuddenly,\" said Syamsul Rizal, a senior official with the
\ndirectorate. In the meantime, residents had to watch out for
\npossible emissions of poisonous gases from the volcano's crater,
\nSyamsul added.<\/p>\n
The volcano, a smoldering 2,076-meter high mountain located
\nnear densely populated Bandung city, last erupted two years ago.
\nThe other volcano, Anak Krakatau, last erupted four years ago,
\nspewing hot ash and black smoke.<\/p>\n
Syamsul has speculated that the Mt. Talang eruption and the
\nincreased activity on Mt. Tangkuban Perahu and Anak Krakatau were
\nclosely related to the series of huge earthquakes that rocked
\nAceh and Nias island recently.<\/p>\n
The first earthquake that hit Aceh province on Dec. 26 last
\nyear registered 9.3 on the Richter scale, while another quake on
\nMarch 28 that jolted the island of Nias registered 8.7.<\/p>\n
\"The two huge earthquakes have created a domino effect. They
\nhave stirred instability on the west Sumatra plate,\" said
\nSyamsul. The earthquake happened after the Indo-Australia plate
\npushed the Euro-Asia plate in the western part of Sumatra, making
\nthe area unstable. The movement, that unleashed hot energy, has
\nmelted rocks inside the earth and turned it fluid, pushing magma
\nto the surface, according to Syamsul.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, volcanic activity has decreased at Mt. Talang in
\nSolok regency, West Sumatra, a day after it erupted on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Dalipa, a volcano observer, said that between Tuesday evening
\nuntil Wednesday afternoon, no significant eruptions have occurred
\nat the volcano.<\/p>\n
The situation was quite different to early Tuesday morning,
\nwhen a large eruption spewed ashes up to a kilometer high. Ash
\nfell as far as 10 kilometers away, and reduced visibility to five
\nkilometers. The eruption was believed to have been triggered by a
\n6.7 tremor that jolted the island of Siberut in West Sumatra on
\nSunday.<\/p>\n
Separately, governors from across the archipelago attended a
\nlecture on earthquakes at the State Palace. Wednesday evening's
\nlecture was held at the invitation of President Susilo Bambang
\nYudhoyono, and is aimed at providing knowledge for governors on
\nearthquakes and volcanic eruptions so that they can be better
\nprepared if such disasters strike their areas.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/increased-activity-spotted-in-two-more-volcanoes-1447893297",
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