JAKARTA (AFP) – A volcano in eastern Indonesia erupted yesterday and spewed an ash tower almost a mile into the sky, prompting officials to raise an alert level to the second-highest and warn people to keep away.
Mount Ibu, located on the island of Halmahera in North Maluku province, erupted at 11.11am and sent a thick column of dark smoke and ash above the peak.
The volcano spewed an ash tower 1.5 kilometres above the peak, Indonesia’s volcanology agency (PVMBG) said.
“Based on the results of visual and instrumental monitoring… Mount Ibu’s activity level has been raised from level two to level three” of a four-tiered system, said PVMBG chief Hendra Gunawan in a statement yesterday.
Authorities formed an exclusion zone between three and five kilometres around the volcano’s crater.
Hendra urged nearby residents to wear face masks and glasses when doing outdoor activities and to prepare for falling volcanic ash.
