Indonesia's Semeru volcano erupts, residents evacuated

Semeru volcano on Indonesia's Java island erupted on Sunday, spewing a 1.5-km high ash column, authorities said.

As of Sunday afternoon, the country's Volcano Disaster Mitigation of the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) has raised its volcanic alert level for Semeru volcano to level 4, the highest level of a four-tier volcanic alert system.

The authorities said they had been evacuating residents of the two nearest villages, Supit Urang village and Sumber Wuluh village, and had warned other locals to stay away at least 13 kilometers from the eruption range.

"We've also told all people living surrounding the volcano to not do any activities around Besuk Kobokan riverside as the river has a potential to flow hot clouds and lava," the spokesman of Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), Abdul Muhari, said in a written statement.

Exactly one year ago today, on Dec. 4, 2021, the Semeru volcano also erupted, killing at least 51 people and injuring 169 others.