Beware of Merapi lava

YOGYAKARTA: The mass of more than four million cubic meters of cold lava on Merapi is increasing by 53,000 cubic meters a day, an official said here yesterday.

Mas Atje Purbawinata, from the directorate general of volcanology in charge of monitoring Mount Merapi, said the lava posed a major threat to residents around the volcano.

If the lava slid down, he said, it would become hot volcanic ash which would endanger human beings, animals and plants within a vast area bordering Yogyakarta and central Java.

The 2,968-meter-high volcano last erupted on January 17, forcing about 18,000 families in several regencies to evacuate. No fatalities were reported.

On Nov. 22, 1994, the volcano erupted killing 66 people and injuring scores of others as a hot cloud fell over densely populated areas as far as seven kilometers from the mountain.

Purbawinata said Merapi was still highly active and nearby residents had been advised to stay on alert for a possible eruption.

"Normally, it takes a month for the lava dome to grow 100,000 cubic meters, but now it only takes two days," he was quoted by Antara as saying. (pan)