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YOGYAKARTA - More than 50,000 people are threatened and urged to evacuate on Indonesia's island of Java as Mount Merapi is feared to erupt soon, officials said on Monday. Authorities say more than 50,000 people may be in danger if the volcano erupts now, and urged residents to move to safer ground immediately. However, many locals are refusing to evacuate, saying it is too soon.
Mount Merapi, which literally translates to 'Mountain of Fire', is one of the country's most activate volcanoes. Scientists have raised the alert level to its highest level after white clouds of smoke began pouring out of the mountain, signaling an imminent eruption.
Mount Merapi, located on the border of Central Java province and the touristic Yogyakarta, could affect regencies that include Sleman, Klaten, Magelang, and Boyolali. Thousands of people have been killed in previous eruptions.
In June 2006, Merapi erupted and killed several people on Java, but officials believe the volcano could have a Plinian eruption, which is the most violent of the four classified types of eruptions and has been compared to a nuclear explosion.
Pyroclastic flows, which are usually brought before a volcano erupts, can be seen as clouds from far away. Subandrio, Head of the Volcanic Technology Development and Investigation Agency of Yogyakarta, said that the temperatures of these clouds may be as high as 1,000 degrees Celsius. As those clouds move down to the slopes of Mount Merapi, as far as four kilometers toward Kaliasem, the temperature will decrease to 500 degrees Celsius.
Last week, the volcanic cone grew by about 8.5 centimeters per day, increasing to 16.4 centimeters per day on Friday, but clouds and poor visibility have hampered scientists' effort to measure the mountain's distention.
The Indonesian government has already prepared a relief package of Rp. 25 billion (US$2.8 million) to respond to the expected eruption. Furthermore, police and military are on standby to deal with refugees and victims.
The eruption in 2006 was not the only notable and deadly eruption. Other major eruptions took place in 1006, 1786, 1822, 1872, and 1930. The 1930 eruption left at least 1,400 people killed.
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