Mount Merapi erupts on March 10, 2019 (Photo: Xinhua/VNA) Jakarta (VNA) – Mount Merapi in Indonesia’s Central Java province spewed hot ash on January 4, causing mild ash rain over the Boyolali regency, according to the Boyolali Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD).
BPBD head Bambang Sinungharjo said the eruption had a maximum amplitude of 55 millimeters and a duration of 105 seconds.
He noted the situation is under control and face masks have been distributed to the public.
The Geological Disaster Technology Research and Development Center has set Merapi’s alert level at waspada (caution), the second-highest level on the country's four-tiered alert system.
Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the Pacific "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates collide and a large portion of the world’s volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.
Last year, it was hit by 11,577 earthquakes, leaving many people dead and homeless./.
VNA
