Mount Semeru erupts, ash column reaches 1,000 metres above summit

Mount Semeru, located on the border of Lumajang and Malang regencies in East Java, erupted on Thursday evening, producing an ash column approximately 1,000 metres above the summit. The eruption occurred at 17:15 WIB, with the observed column reaching 4,676 metres above sea level, according to Mount Semeru Observation Post officer Mukdas Sofian in a written report received in Lumajang. The ash column was observed to be white to grey in colour with thick intensity drifting towards the southwest. The eruption was recorded on a seismograph with a maximum amplitude of 22 mm and a duration of 165 seconds. Based on officer records, Mount Semeru, the highest volcano on Java Island, has erupted 12 times since 05:00 WIB until 17:30 WIB, with eruption heights ranging from 500 to 1,200 metres above the summit. The public is prohibited from conducting activities within a five-kilometre radius of the crater or peak of Mount Semeru due to the danger of incandescent rock projectiles. Additionally, people are asked not to carry out activities within 500 metres of the riverbank along Besuk Kobokan, as there is potential for exposure to expanding hot clouds and lava flows up to a distance of 17 kilometres from the summit. The public is urged to remain vigilant against the potential for hot clouds, lava avalanches, and lahars along river valleys originating at the summit of Mount Semeru.