Indonesia raises volcano’s alert level to highest, orders evacuations

By Saadet Gokce

ISTANBUL (AA) — Indonesia on Thursday raised the alert level of a volcano in the East Nusa Tenggara region to the highest level and asked six villages in the area to evacuate.

Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, located on the tourist island of Flores, had also erupted last November, killing at least 10 people, injuring over two dozen, disrupting flights, and forcing thousands to evacuate.

The alert level, raised from Level 3 to Level 4, shows a critical phase and increased possibility of a major eruption, according to a statement from the Indonesian National Disaster Mitigation Agency.

Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki has recently shown increased activity, with visible signs indicating that lava is close to the surface, the statement said.

It added that recent earthquakes suggest rising magma activity in the mountain and movement toward the surface.

The smoke from the mountain reached 1,500 meters (4,921 feet) from the peak, while the eruption reached 800 m (2,624 ft).

The agency advised the residents to stay away from a radius of 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the crater and 7 km (4.3 mi) from the southwest-northeast sector.

People were also warned to watch out for lava floods.

Indonesia, which lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire, has 130 active volcanoes, making it one of the world's most seismically active countries.