Mount Semeru Erupts Seven Times in Four Hours on Friday Morning

Mount Semeru, located on the border of Lumajang and Malang regencies in East Java and standing 3,676 metres above sea level, erupted seven times over four hours on Friday, with eruption heights ranging from 400 to 1,300 metres above the summit. The first eruption occurred at 06.06 WIB, with an observed ash column reaching approximately 700 metres above the peak. The thick grey ash column was observed drifting southeast and was recorded on a seismograph with a maximum amplitude of 22 mm and a duration of 108 seconds. The second eruption took place at 07.22 WIB, with an observed column height of 400 metres above the summit, according to Mount Semeru Observation Post officer Liswanto. The volcano erupted again at 07.29 WIB, with an ash column reaching around 1,100 metres, followed minutes later at 07.58 WIB by another eruption sending ash 1,300 metres high. At 09.48 WIB, the highest mountain on Java Island erupted once more, with an observed column height of about 1,300 metres and a white to grey ash column of moderate intensity drifting south. The eruption was still ongoing at the time of reporting. Mount Semeru erupted again at 10.18 WIB, with an observed column height of around 1,000 metres and a white to grey ash column of moderate intensity moving south. Liswanto explained that the volcanic activity at Mount Semeru remains at Status Level III (Siaga), with a recommendation that the public avoid all activities in the southeast sector along Besuk Kobokan, up to 13 kilometres from the summit. The public is prohibited from conducting any activities within a five-kilometre radius of the crater due to the danger of ejected incandescent rocks. He urged the public to remain alert to the potential for pyroclastic flows, lava avalanches, and lahars along the river valleys originating from the peak of Mount Semeru, particularly along Besuk Kobokan, Besuk Bang, Besuk Kembar, and Besuk Sat, as well as the potential for lahars in small streams that are tributaries of Besuk Kobokan.