Massive Indonesian Volcano Starts Erupting - A state scientist says Indonesia's most volatile volcano has started to erupt, spewing plumes of hot ash and rocks high into the air.
Several people were injured by the hot ash spewed during the initial eruption. An AP reporter witnessed as many as 20 people being taken away for treatment of their injuries.
Subandriyo, chief vulcanologist in the area, said Mount Merapi started to erupt just before dusk Tuesday. It had rumbled and groaned for hours.
Scientists have warned that pressure building beneath Merapi's lava dome could trigger one of the most powerful blasts in years.
Villagers board a truck to evacuate their homes on the slope of Mount Merapi in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Oct. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Slamet Riyadi)
Mount Merapi spews volcanic smoke as seen from Balerante, Central Java, Indonesia, Oct. 26, 2010. (AP Photo)
Thousands of residents on the slopes have been evacuated.
Scientists had warned earlier in the day that pressure building beneath the lava dome in the mouth of Indonesia's most volatile volcano could trigger one of its deadliest blasts in years.
Meanwhile, a different disaster befell residents in another part of the country on Tuesday, as officials said the death toll from a tsunami off western Indonesia had climbed to 23, and scores of villagers were missing.
The 10-foot wave was triggered by a 7.7-magnitude quake, which struck 13 miles beneath the ocean floor late Monday. A tsunami watch was issued for islanders in the immediate area after the quake, but was lifted about an hour later.
Mount Merapi has seen increased volcanic activity in recent days, prompting officials to raise the alert level for the 9,737-foot high mountain to its highest level, said government volcanologist Surono, who uses only one name.
It last erupted in 2006, when it sent an avalanche of blistering gases and rock fragments racing down the mountain that killed two people. A similar eruption in 1994 killed 60 people, while 1,300 people died in an eruption in 1930.
An avalanche of rocks spilled down Merapi's trembling slopes before dawn Tuesday and gusts of hot ash shot 150 feet into the air as the mountain groaned and rumbled.
The greatest concern, Surono told reporters, was pressure building behind a massive lava dome that has formed near the tip of the crater.
"The energy is building up. ... We hope it will release slowly," he said. "Otherwise we're looking at a potentially huge eruption, bigger than anything we've seen in years."
Sri Purnomo, the head of Sleman district on Java island, where Mount Merapi is located, said officials were warning some 11,400 villagers living on the mountain's southern slope to prepare for "urgent evacuation."
Hundreds have already been relocated to makeshift camps set up at government buildings and sports fields more than six miles from the mountain's base, most of them elderly residents and children.
"I just have to follow orders to take shelter here for safety even though I'd rather like to stay at home," said Ponco Sumarto, 65, who arrived at one of the camps with her two grandchildren.
She said her children stayed at home to take care of their livestock and crops.
There are more than 129 active volcanoes to watch in Indonesia, which is spread across 17,500 islands and is prone to eruptions and earthquakes because of its location within the so-called "Ring of Fire" - a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.
The most recent was Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province. It had been dormant for four centuries before springing to life in August but has since quieted and refugees from its slopes have returned home.
Meanwhile, a strong earthquake hit late Monday off the western coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island, but no damage or casualties were immediately reported.
The 7.5-magnitude temblor struck at a depth of 9 miles on a small island off Sumatra, the U.S. Geological Survey said. A massive earthquake and tsunami struck off the same island in 2004. ( cbsnews.com )
Several people were injured by the hot ash spewed during the initial eruption. An AP reporter witnessed as many as 20 people being taken away for treatment of their injuries.
Subandriyo, chief vulcanologist in the area, said Mount Merapi started to erupt just before dusk Tuesday. It had rumbled and groaned for hours.
Scientists have warned that pressure building beneath Merapi's lava dome could trigger one of the most powerful blasts in years.
Villagers board a truck to evacuate their homes on the slope of Mount Merapi in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Monday, Oct. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Slamet Riyadi)
Mount Merapi spews volcanic smoke as seen from Balerante, Central Java, Indonesia, Oct. 26, 2010. (AP Photo)
Thousands of residents on the slopes have been evacuated.
Scientists had warned earlier in the day that pressure building beneath the lava dome in the mouth of Indonesia's most volatile volcano could trigger one of its deadliest blasts in years.
Meanwhile, a different disaster befell residents in another part of the country on Tuesday, as officials said the death toll from a tsunami off western Indonesia had climbed to 23, and scores of villagers were missing.
The 10-foot wave was triggered by a 7.7-magnitude quake, which struck 13 miles beneath the ocean floor late Monday. A tsunami watch was issued for islanders in the immediate area after the quake, but was lifted about an hour later.
Mount Merapi has seen increased volcanic activity in recent days, prompting officials to raise the alert level for the 9,737-foot high mountain to its highest level, said government volcanologist Surono, who uses only one name.
It last erupted in 2006, when it sent an avalanche of blistering gases and rock fragments racing down the mountain that killed two people. A similar eruption in 1994 killed 60 people, while 1,300 people died in an eruption in 1930.
An avalanche of rocks spilled down Merapi's trembling slopes before dawn Tuesday and gusts of hot ash shot 150 feet into the air as the mountain groaned and rumbled.
The greatest concern, Surono told reporters, was pressure building behind a massive lava dome that has formed near the tip of the crater.
"The energy is building up. ... We hope it will release slowly," he said. "Otherwise we're looking at a potentially huge eruption, bigger than anything we've seen in years."
Sri Purnomo, the head of Sleman district on Java island, where Mount Merapi is located, said officials were warning some 11,400 villagers living on the mountain's southern slope to prepare for "urgent evacuation."
Hundreds have already been relocated to makeshift camps set up at government buildings and sports fields more than six miles from the mountain's base, most of them elderly residents and children.
"I just have to follow orders to take shelter here for safety even though I'd rather like to stay at home," said Ponco Sumarto, 65, who arrived at one of the camps with her two grandchildren.
She said her children stayed at home to take care of their livestock and crops.
There are more than 129 active volcanoes to watch in Indonesia, which is spread across 17,500 islands and is prone to eruptions and earthquakes because of its location within the so-called "Ring of Fire" - a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.
The most recent was Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province. It had been dormant for four centuries before springing to life in August but has since quieted and refugees from its slopes have returned home.
Meanwhile, a strong earthquake hit late Monday off the western coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island, but no damage or casualties were immediately reported.
The 7.5-magnitude temblor struck at a depth of 9 miles on a small island off Sumatra, the U.S. Geological Survey said. A massive earthquake and tsunami struck off the same island in 2004. ( cbsnews.com )
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