Mount Tambora's status upgraded to alert level
Mount Tambora’s status upgraded to alert level
Dompu, West Nusa Tenggara (ANTARA) — The Geology Agency of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources elevated the activity status of Mount Tambora on Sumbawa Island, West Nusa Tenggara, from Level I (Normal) to Level II (Alert) as of Tuesday at 10:00 WITA.
Head of the Geological Agency’s Centre for Volcanic and Landslide Hazard Mitigation (BPGMGT) for Nusa Tenggara, Zakarias Dedu Ghele Raja, stated that the upgrade was based on evaluation of visual and instrumental data showing increased volcanic seismic activity.
“The increase is particularly demonstrated by a rise in the number of earthquakes associated with magma movement from depth towards the magma chamber beneath Mount Tambora,” he said via WhatsApp.
Seismic monitoring data indicated the volcano experienced 267 volcanic earthquakes in January 2026, with the figure rising to 453 in February 2026.
The increase in volcanic earthquakes indicates rising magmatic fluid pressure and magma supply from depth towards the shallower magma system beneath Mount Tambora.
Seismic activity during the period of 1-9 March 2026 remained quite intense. During this period, Tambora recorded nine rockfall earthquakes, 88 shallow volcanic earthquakes, 40 local tectonic earthquakes, and 24 distant tectonic earthquakes.
“The dominance of shallow volcanic earthquakes indicates that magmatic dynamics beneath the volcano continue and potentially could trigger increased activity in the following period,” said Zakarias.
Residents and visitors are prohibited from descending to the caldera floor, approaching the parasitic cones of Doro Afi Toi and Doro Afi Bou, and approaching gas vents on the caldera floor.
Additionally, residents are advised to be cautious of potential rockfall or landslide hazards on caldera cliffs and walls that could occur at any time due to slope instability.
Local government and communities surrounding Mount Tambora are expected to monitor volcanic activity information from the Mount Tambora Observation Post in Doro Peti Village, Pekat District, Dompu Regency, as well as the Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation.