Sinabung Erupts Again, A Number of Areas Covered by Thick Ash
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Sinabung Erupts Again, A...
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Sinabung Erupts Again, A Number of Areas Covered by Thick Ash
Sinabung has erupted after one year of inactivity. People have been warned to stay alert but no orders have been given to evacuate.
By
NIKSON SINAGA
·3 minutes read
KABANJAHE, KOMPAS -- Mount Sinabung in Karo regency, North Sumatra, erupted again with an ash column of 5,000 meters high on Monday (10/8/2020). A number of villages around Sinabung were completely covered by thick ash. Locals have been asked to be on alert for seismic activity.
"The volcanic ash resulting from the eruption of Mount Sinabung has reached a number of sub-districts around it. People are now taking shelter inside their homes so they are not exposed to the ash,” said Karo Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) acting head Natanael Peranginangin.
People are now taking shelter inside their homes so they are not exposed to the ash
Sinabung erupted at 10:16 a.m. and 11:17 a.m. when people went to the fields, opened stalls and offices. The eruption caused people around Mount Sinabung to stop their activities and go straight home.
The situation in several districts affected by volcanic ash was also dark. Some passing vehicles have to switch on the lights so they can see the road more clearly.
Natanael said they immediately prepared a fire engine and a police water cannon vehicle. When the ash settled, they immediately cleared the road of ash. "We are also preparing masks to be distributed to the public. However, at this time we ask people around Mount Sinabung to stay at home,” he said.
Security at the entrance to the red zone of the Mount Sinabung eruption is now being tightened. Mount Sinabung\'s red zone covers a radius of 3 kilometers from the top of the mountain. Especially for the east-north area, the red zone has been expanded to a radius of 4 km and the south-east area has expanded to a radius of 5 km.
An observer at the Sinabung Volcano Observation Post of the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG), Armen Putra, said that Mount Sinabung\'s volcanic activity has increased in recent days after more than a year of inactivity. On Saturday (8/8/2020), Sinabung also erupted three times with an ash column height of 1,000 to 2,000 m.
Sinabung’s seismic activity has also increased sharply, dominated by deep volcanic earthquakes. The earthquakes indicate a flow of fluid from the magma chamber to the surface.
As volcanic activity increases, said Armen, people are asked to be aware of the dangers of eruptions, hot clouds, the flushing of incandescent lava, the falling of volcanic material in the form of small rocks, poisonous gases and thick ash. On the slope of the mountain, material from the eruption cause a landslide of cold lava when it rains.
Before it erupted again on Saturday, Sinabung last erupted on 9 June 2019 with a 7,000-m-high ash column. The eruption occurred after the status of Mount Sinabung was downgraded from alert to high-alert on 20 May 2019.