Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Male Volcano Erupts, Alert at Highest Level

Authorities recorded the volcano unleashing 10,000 metres (32,800 feet) of thick grey clouds.

Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano in south-central Indonesia has erupted, spewing towering columns of hot ash into the air and prompting authorities to both raise the alert to the highest level and expand the danger zone to 8km (5 miles) from the crater.

The Indonesian Geological Agency said it recorded the volcano unleashing 10,000 metres (32,800 feet) of thick grey clouds on Tuesday afternoon.

The explosion of ash expanded into a mushroom-shaped cloud that could be seen from cities located 90km (56 miles) to 150km (93 miles) from the mountain.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. Residents were warned to be vigilant about heavy rainfall triggering lava flows in rivers originating from the volcano.

There were also no immediate reports of cancelled flights after Tuesday’s eruption.

An eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki in November killed nine people and injured dozens. The 1,584-metre (5,197-foot) mountain is a twin volcano with Mount Lewotobi Perempuan in the district of Flores Timur.

Laki-laki means “man” in Indonesian, while its calmer twin volcano was named after the Indonesian word for “woman”.

Indonesia is an archipelago of 270 million people with frequent seismic activity. It has 120 active volcanoes and sits along the “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

On October 27, West Sumatra province’s Mount Marapi – one of the country’s most active volcanoes – also erupted.