MOUNT SINABUNG, Indonesia (AP) – A rumbling volcano on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia released an avalanche of burning gas clouds at its slopes during an eruption on Thursday. No casualties were reported.
Mount Sinabung in northern Sumatra province has shot up smoke and ash up to 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) in the air, and hot ash clouds have blown 3 kilometers southeast, Indonesia’s volcanological and geological hazard mitigation center said.
There were no casualties from the eruption, said Armen Putra, an official at the Sinabung monitoring post. He said villagers are advised to stay 5 miles from the crater’s mouth and should be aware of the lava danger.
A warning has been maintained at the second highest level, while authorities are closely monitoring the volcano after sensors picked up increasing activity over the past few weeks.
The 2,600-meter (8,530-foot) mountain has been rumbling since last year. It sent volcanic materials of more than 5,000 meters (16,400 feet) into the air and deposited ash in nearby villages when it erupted earlier this month.
About 30,000 people have been forced to leave their homes around Sinabung in the past few years.
Sinabung was dormant for four centuries before erupting in 2010 and killing two people. In another eruption in 2014, 17 people died, while seven died in an eruption in 2016.
The volcano, one of two currently erupting in Indonesia, has since come to life sporadically.
Sinabung is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which are prone to seismic upheaval due to their location on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines surrounding the Pacific Basin.