THE country recently raised its alert as the country’s volcanology authorities reported hundreds of volcanic activities in the past week.
As of Saturday, 17 volcanoes were on level II alert status, according to the latest report from the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG).
The Marapi volcano in west Sumatra erupted 191 times on Saturday, spewing up to 600m-high ash columns, the Marapi Volcano Observation Post (PGA) reported.
On Java Island, the Semeru volcano erupted once on Saturday and twice on Friday. It spewed out 700m to 1,000m-high white and gray ash columns with thick intensity, Mount Semeru Monitoring Post reported.
Also on Saturday, the Ili Lewotolok volcano in East Nusa Tenggara erupted and brought a potential threat of lava, PVMBG said.
With 142 volcanoes, Indonesia has the largest population globally living in close range to a volcano.
Around 8.6 million people live within a radius of 10km from the volcanoes, according to data from Statistics Indonesia. — Xinhua
