Mount Semeru, located in Indonesia’s East Java province, spewed ash nearly 4.5 km into the air during a new eruption, the Antara news agency reported Wednesday, citing the local monitoring post.
According to the data, the eruption lasted about two minutes. The ash and smoke column rose 800 meters above the crater, reaching an altitude of 4,476 meters.
Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation urged residents to stay at least three kilometers away from the crater due to the risk of new ejections of incandescent rocks. On the southeastern side of the volcano, a safety distance of eight kilometers was deemed necessary.
Volcanologists also warned people to avoid rivers originating on the volcano because of the risk of mudflows. The Center assigned the eruption the second-highest danger level on a four-tier scale.
Mount Semeru is Indonesia’s fourth-highest volcano (3,676 meters) and the highest peak on the island of Java.
