Bali volcano eruption latest update: Mount Agung sends up plume in shape of clenched fist
BALI’s highest volcano Mount Agung erupted again and sent up a plume of steam in the shape of a clenched fist earlier today.
BNPB Reuters
The extraordinary pinkish plume was seen over Mount Agung in Bali at 4.56am local time today, according to the National Agency for Disaster Management (BNPB).
BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho shared the photograph of the plume rising from the volcano on the Indonesian holiday destination.
He said a small eruption sent the clenched hand-like plume up from the crater, while volcanic activity remains high at Mount Agung.
The emission of plumes is becoming increasingly common and he also shared an image of a grey plume stretching 2,500m above the crater at 7.20am local time.
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The Bali volcano threat remains at the highest possible level and more than 70,000 evacuees have fled their homes in the danger zone.
The international airports on Bali and Lombok are operating normally today despite the plumes of ash and a code orange aviation warning.
There were a series of minor eruptions over the weekend after the volcano came to life again and sent out a plume of ash on Friday.
The Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Agency (PVMBG) said that greyish-white plumes have soared as high as 2,000m above the crater.
PVMBG volcanologist Gede Suantika said there were seven eruptions of ash between midnight and 10pm on Saturday, according to Indonesian new agency ANTARA News.
"Sometimes it is hard for the lava and magma to come out, and when there is pressure, it will spew ash,” he told Reuters.
The latest seismogram, from Magma Indonesia, shows that more seismic activity continued to rock the volcano today.
In recent weeks, hot magma has produced an eerie red glow just above the crater and cold lava mudflows have poured down the slopes.
Mount Agung eruption, latest pictures
Fri, December 8, 2017Indonesian authorities raised the state of alert to its highest level for the volcano, Mount Agung, after thick ash started shooting thousands of meters into the air with increasing intensity
Grey plume above Mount Agung at 08:03 local time. This was one of at least 3 similar sized small plumes seen this morning
The authorities raised alarm when the volcano started erupting last month, causing travel chaos by closing the island's airport for three days.
The first evacuations from around the volcano took place in September when there was the first spike in earthquakes and seismic activity.
There is ongoing uncertainty over whether there could be major eruption but the authorities want to prevent a repeat of a tragedy in 1963.
When the Mount Agung last erupted in 1963, it killed more than 1,100 people.
