Volcano eruption in Indonesia kills at least 6 – NBC New York

A series of volcanic eruptions on the remote island of Flores have killed at least six people, Indonesia’s national disaster agency said Monday.

The eruption of Mount Levotobi Laki Laki just after midnight on Monday spewed thick brown ash 2,000 meters (6,500 feet) and hot ash hit a nearby village, burning down several houses, including a convent of Catholic nuns, Firman Yosef said. , an official at the Levotobi Laki Laki monitoring post.

The disaster management agency lowered the known death toll from an earlier report of nine, saying it had received updated information from local authorities. It said information on the extent of casualties and damage was still being gathered, as local media reported that more people were buried in destroyed houses.

Authorities also raised the alert level and expanded the danger zone for Mount Levotobi Laki Laki on Monday after a series of eruptions that began last week.

The country’s volcano monitoring agency raised the volcano’s alert status to its highest level and more than doubled the exclusion zone to a 7-kilometer (4.3-mile) radius after midnight Monday as eruptions became more frequent.

The agency said at least 10,000 people were affected by the eruption in Wulangitang district, in the six nearby villages of Pululera, Navokote, Hokeng Jaya, Klathanlo, Boru and Boru Kedang.

In Il Bura District, 4 villages namely Dulipali Village, Nobo, Nurabelen and Riang Rita were affected and in Titehena District four villages were affected namely Konga Village, Kobasoma, Bokang Wolomatang and Watowara.

Volcanic material was thrown 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from its crater, blanketing nearby villages and towns with tonnes of volcanic debris and forcing residents to flee, he said.

A nun in the village of Hokeng was killed and another missing, said Agusta Palma, head of the St. Gabriel Foundation, which oversees monasteries on the predominantly Catholic island.

“Our nuns fled in panic under a shower of volcanic ash in the dark,” Palma said.

Photos and videos shared on social media showed tons of volcanic debris covering houses up to their roofs in villages like Hokeng, where hot volcanic material set fire to houses.

This is the second volcanic eruption in Indonesia in as many weeks. Mount Marapi in West Sumatra province, one of the country’s most active volcanoes, erupted on Oct. 27, spewing ash columns at least three times as thick and littering nearby villages with debris, but there were no casualties.

Kilauea, Hawaii’s second largest volcano, erupted on Monday morning.