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Mass evacuation in Indonesia as Java volcano erupts | Mass evacuation in Indonesia as Java volcano erupts |
(35 minutes later) | |
Thousands of people are evacuating their homes in Indonesia after a volcano erupted in east Java. | |
Mount Kelud spewed ash and debris over a large area, including the city of Surabaya, about 130km (80 miles) away. | |
Some towns are reported to have been covered by a 4cm (1.6 in) layer of ash. | |
Three major airports in Surabaya, Solo and Jogyakarta were forced to shut down because of low visibility. There are also fears that debris could damage aircraft engines. | |
Officials raised an alert on Thursday before the volcano erupted, and urged around 200,000 people living in 36 villages in a 10km (6 mile) radius around the volcano to evacuate. | |
However, it is not clear if they have all left their homes. | |
The volcano spewed ash and gravel that flew as far as 200km (124 miles) away, National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told the BBC. | |
The 1,731-m (5,600 ft) Mount Kelud - which had been rumbling for several weeks - erupted at about 21:50 local time (16:50 GMT) on Thursday | |
However, the head of Indonesia's Volcano and Geology Agency, Hendrasto, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, said the eruption was gradually subsiding. | |
The volcano last erupted in 1990, killing dozens of people. A powerful eruption in 1919 killed around 5,000 people. | |
Indonesia lies across a series of geological fault-lines and is prone to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. | |
There are around 130 active volcanoes in the country. | |
Earlier this month, Mount Sinabung on the island of Sumatra erupted, killing at least 14 people. |