Villagers flee in fear of lava

Yongker Rumthe, The Jakarta Post, Manado, North Sulawesi

Villagers living near Mount Soputan, which continued to spew ash and smoke in North Sulawesi province on Monday, began to flee their homes as lava started to approach their villages.

Since Sunday night, lava has been pouring down the slopes of the volcano and has started to affect residential areas nearby, and rivers adjacent to Amurang, the main city in South Minahasa regency -- around 45 kilometers from the provincial capital of Manado.

As a result, people in Kota Menara village in Tombasian subdistrict, South Minahasa, were forced to abandon their homes and flee to safer areas.

"I had to abandon my village, where hot ash and rocks are continuing to rain down the whole time. Our plantations have been incinerated by the lava from Mount Soputan," said local villager G. Rawis, 37.

Another villager, Marthen Liwan, said he had taken his family to Amurang for fear of the lava.

Amurang subdistrict head Hendry Sondakh confirmed that dozens of villagers had fled their homes and were now seeking refuge in the southern part of South Minahasa.

"However, some other residents remained in their villages to take care of their plantations. The refugees are those who are afraid of the lava flows," he said.

Syamsul Rizal, a volcanologist from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), who is monitoring developments in Amurang, warned local people of the dangers of the lava from Soputan, which he said had the potential to affect residential areas.

Aside from Amurang, the lava was also affecting neighboring Maliku village, around 10 kilometers south of the volcano, he said.

It would soon likely reach as far as the center of Amurang, and was only 25 kilometers away at the moment, he added.

"People living in the vicinity of the town should remain alert for the lava, whose temperature can reach 600 degrees Celsius, as it has burned down many plantations," Rizal said.

Mount Soputan, located near Tomohon village in Minahasa regency, erupted on Friday morning, belching smoke up to 1,500 meters into the air, and raining down hot ash and rocks onto surrounding areas.

No casualties or injuries have been reported so far.

The volcano was reported quieter on Monday compared to three days ago.

Rizal said that Manado, where many residents had to wear face masks on Friday, was no longer blanketed by smoke and ash as the wind was blowing in a northwesterly direction instead of a southerly direction.