Anak Krakatau Volcano on Alert Status, Residents Warned to Keep Away

The Geological Agency of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has confirmed that volcanic activity at Mount Anak Krakatau in the Sunda Strait is now at Level III, or Siaga. Mount Anak Krakatau is located on the border between South Lampung, Lampung, and Banten.

Deny Mardiono, an officer at the Anak Krakatau Observation Post of the Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG), reported that during the observation period on Wednesday (8/7) from noon to 6 p.m. WIB, smoke emissions were seen billowing from the active crater to heights of tens of metres. “The glow of the fire was clearly visible until it was obscured by clouds. Weak pressure crater smoke was observed as white with moderate to thick intensity, reaching 10 to 100 metres above the crater peak,” he stated.

Regarding seismic activity, the volcanic monitoring authority detected tremor activity indicating magma movement within the mountain. Seismogram recordings from the observation post showed continuous tremor earthquakes with vibration amplitudes ranging from 1 to 15 millimetres, with a dominant amplitude of 5 millimetres. Despite the seismic activity and visual smoke emissions above the crater peak, Deny noted that the sea surface conditions in the surrounding waters were observed to be calm.

The Geological Agency has issued a recommendation for the public, visitors, tourists, and climbers not to approach the volcano or conduct any activities within a three-kilometre radius of the active crater. The meteorological conditions around the Mount Anak Krakatau area were reported as clear and cloudy, with air temperatures ranging between 27.1 and 31.9 degrees Celsius and humidity levels of 55 to 65 percent.