Volcanic ash blankets villages near Indonesian volcano

West Australian

08-07-2025

Residents are wearing masks to protect themselves from thick volcanic ash that has blanketed roads and green rice fields in Indonesia as rumbling Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki erupts for a second straight day.
The eruption at dawn on Tuesday sent lava and clouds of ash up to 4km high.
That followed an eruption on Monday that sent a column of volcanic materials up to 18km into the sky and an evening burst that spewed lava and send volcanic ash as high as 13km into the air.
Photos and videos circulating on social media showed terrified residents ran for their lives under the rain of ash and gravel and motorists struggled to drive motorbikes and cars in the reduced visibility as the ash clouds from Monday's eruption expanded into a mushroom shape.
No casualties have been reported from the latest eruptions of the volcano that has been at the highest alert level since June 18 when its no-go zone was expanded to a 7km radius, said Abdul Muhari, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesperson.
"People around the volcano have increasingly understood how to minimise the impact of disaster risks as eruptions became more frequent since the end of 2023," Muhari said in a statement.
The eruptions of the volcano on Flores Island affected more than 10,000 people in 10 villages in East Flores and Sikka districts, according to the local disaster management agency.
Thick volcanic ash and rocks were reported to have fallen in villages of Nawakote, Klantanio, Hokeng Jaya, Boru, Pululera and Wulanggitang, where roads and green rice fields were transformed into grey thick mud and rocks.
Authorities distributed 50,000 masks and urged residents to limit outdoor activities to protect themselves from volcanic materials.
The eruption of Lewotobi Laki Laki followed its eruption in November 2024 that killed nine people and injured dozens.
Muhari said two airports in the cities of Maumere and Larantuka in East Nusa Tenggara province remained closed on Tuesday.
Dozens of flights to and from the Ngurah Rai international airport on the resort island of Bali were delayed or cancelled since Monday's eruption, including from Australian carriers Virgin Australia and Jetstar, but airport spokesperson Ahmad Syaugi Shahab said the airport was running normally as monitoring showed the volcanic ash had not affected Bali's airspace.
Indonesia has 120 active volcanoes and sits along the "Ring of Fire", a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.