The residents of the neighboring island of Tagulandang continued to be warned of the risk of a tsunami caused by lava masses and rocks emitted by the volcano.
The local authorities initially said on Friday that the Ruang had calmed down, but that the danger had not yet been averted. In fact, a few hours later, the volcano emitted large amounts of ash again. According to the Indonesian Volcanology Agency, the ash cloud rose 400 meters above the crater. Residents were asked to wear protective masks to avoid respiratory problems.
Video article: Tsunami warning after volcanic eruption in Indonesia
Riko, 30, who lives on the neighboring island of Tagulandang, said he was “taken by surprise” by the new eruption. “We’re scared,” he reported. Before the new eruption, hundreds of residents on Tagulandang began clearing away rubble that had fallen on their villages over the past few days on Friday. As a reporter from the AFP news agency reported, the islanders were supported by soldiers and police.
Power supply partially paralyzed
Island resident Herman Sahoa, 64, said debris ejected from the volcano damaged the roof of his home. “We really need tarpaulins as soon as possible so we can seal the leaky roof,” he told AFP. The power supply was also paralyzed in parts of the island.
Picture gallery: Highest alert level after volcanic eruptions in Indonesia
Indonesia volcanic eruption (Photo: AFP/Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation) Bild 1/10
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Since Tuesday evening (local time), Ruang in northeast Indonesia had erupted around half a dozen times within 24 hours. A column of smoke hundreds of meters high rose above the crater and lava flowed down the slopes. The Ruang is located on a small island not far from Tagulandang, where around 20,000 people live. More than 6,000 of them were brought to safety on the side of the island away from the volcano, Joikson Sagunde of the local disaster management agency said on Friday. No injuries were initially reported.
Location: Ruang, Indonesia
An exclusion zone has been set up within a six-kilometer radius around the Ruang. The warning that lava masses and rocks ejected from the volcano could trigger a tsunami remained in effect on Friday. Because of the volcanic eruptions, the international airport in the city of Manado, more than 100 kilometers away, was also closed. According to the national disaster management agency, flight operations should not resume before Friday evening.
In 2018, an eruption of the Anak Krakatoa volcano, which lies between the islands of Java and Sumatra, triggered a tsunami. Because the crater partially collapsed, a tidal wave was so violent that more than 400 people were killed.
Southeast Asia’s Indonesia, with its more than 17,000 islands, lies on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where several plates collide. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions often occur there.
