Indonesians cope with ash as Mount Merapi erupts again
Mount Merapi in Central Java of Indonesia erupted again yesterday morning, forcing refugees from several villages to take shelter.
Some villages, such as Tecoh, Klakah and Tlogolele, on the north side of the mountain were covered with volcanic ash.
Kurniawan Fajar Prasetyo, head of emergency for Boyolali Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) said they distributed free surgical masks to citizens and passersby around Selo.
Fajar said after the morning eruption hundreds of residents of Tlogolele village were evacuated to a shelter. However, at noon they went back to their residential areas to continue their activities after the ash shower had subsided and visibility on the road had improved.
"The residents need provisions and surgical masks. They will go back to the shelter at night.
Merapi erupted for two minutes on Friday morning, emitting a 6,000-meter-high eruption column to the northwest.
Meanwhile, animals living in Merapi National Park, including long-tailed monkeys, have been seen migrating from the forest down into residential areas because of the increasing temperature.
"The movement of long-tailed monkeys has been used as an indicator of the forest condition. Their habitat is getting noisy and hot because of the eruption. Their food has also become scarce," Ammy Nurwati, the head of Merapi National Park said.
She said the agency had distributed a circular letter appealing to the people not to disturb the migrating animals. The letter mentioned the potential appearance of long-tailed monkeys, mouse deer, and Timor deer in residential areas.
Ahmad Yani International Airport in Semarang and Adi Soemarmo International Airport in Surakarta, both in Central Java, were temporarily closed due to the spread of volcanic ash from Mount Merapi, according to airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I (AP I).
Operations were suspended for three hours on Friday, from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., after volcanic ash reached both airports, potentially affecting flight safety.