Mt. Merapi activity intensifies: Rizal

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Monday's activity of the 2,968-meter-high Merapi volcano increased nearly threefold compared to the day before with the emission of increasing amounts of lava and gas clouds, and dust seen blanketing its slopes, except for the eastern side.

Head of the Yogyakarta Volcanology Development and Research Station (BPPTK) Syamsul Rizal said that between midnight and 6 a.m. local time on Monday, lava was being spurted out once every five to ten minutes.

"We recorded 55 emissions in the Kali Sat flow, 59 in the Kali Senowo flow, and six in the Kali Bebeng flow within six hours," Rizal said. "The lava reached as far as 4.5 kilometers in the Kali Sat flow."

The hot clouds extended between two and 2.5 kilometers along the Kali Senowo and Kali Bebeng.

"We have concluded that the Kali Sat and Kali Senowo are the main channels for the lava," said Rizal.

The BPPTK also found on Monday that dust was been spewed out from all of the volcano's slopes, whereas previously the dust had only been spewed out from the northwestern slope.

The station also reported that the newly formed lava dome, which has been named Kubah 2001, grew very rapidly yesterday.

"If the dome becomes wider gradually, an eruption will be less likely," Rizal said.

Rizal explained that the formation of the new dome could lead to two possibilities. Firstly, it could cause a continuous discharge of hot gas clouds and lava for several weeks. Alternatively, it could cause an eruption. If the new dome tended to grow very rapidly, eruption would be more likely, he explained.

Due to its intensifying activity, Merapi has been declared as an alert-status area, meaning that residents living in areas less than seven kilometers from the mountain must leave their homes. All activities on the mountain's slopes, including sand quarrying, have been totally halted. (swa)