Mount Semeru Erupts 3 Times, Ash Column Reaches 1 Km

Mount Semeru on the border of Lumajang and Malang regencies in East Java erupted three times on Saturday, Oct. 17, with the highest ash column rising 1,000 meters above the summit at 10:42 a.m. Earlier eruptions were recorded at 04:52 a.m. with a height of 700 meters and at 06:35 a.m. at 800 meters. Agastya Rajendra, an observer at the Semeru Volcano Observation Post, reported volcanic ash drifting west. The activity was recorded on a seismograph with a maximum amplitude of 22-25 millimeters and a duration of 90-137 seconds. Semeru remains at Level III, or Alert. Residents are barred from activities in the southeast sector along Besuk Kobokan up to 13 kilometers from the summit and within a 5-kilometer radius of the crater. Authorities also urged residents to watch for pyroclastic flows, lava avalanches and lahars in Besuk Kobokan, Besuk Bang, Besuk Kembar and Besuk Sat.