Magma rises in menacing Indonesian volcano
Pastor Dale Morgan
Magma rises in menacing Indonesian volcano*
JAKARTA, July 13 (AFP) Jul 13, 2007
Magma is rising inside a volcano smouldering in Indonesia's northeast, a
geologist warned Friday, as thousands of people evacuated from its
slopes remained sheltered in safe zones.
Mount Gamkonora, a 1,635-metre (5,461-foot) high volcano on Halmahera
island in North Maluku province, has been spitting rocks, ash and smoke
into the air since Monday and experts fear an eruption could be imminent.
After a slowdown in activity Thursday, five volcanic quakes shook the
area early Friday, sending ash raining down six kilometres (four miles)
from the crater, said Saud Simatupang from the volcanology office.
"Even though the column of ash and smoke has reduced down from 4,000
metres (yards) to about 2,000 metres in the last few hours, it doesn't
mean that the volcano is stopping its activity," he told AFP.
The geologist said that volcanic tremors had been pushing energy upwards
so "we can assume that the magma is already getting close to the crater."
"We have to pay attention in case of a big tectonic quake, which will
give an impetus to the volcano to emit lava," he warned.
Rustam Pakaya, a health ministry official in Jakarta involved in
coordinating evacuees, said the latest report showed 8,900 people
remained in shelters.
The government has sent food, tents, blankets and mats for evacuees.
Indonesia sits on the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire" where continental
plates meet, causing frequent volcanic and seismic activity.
The archipelago nation has the world's highest number of active volcanoes.
Gamkonora, some 2,700 kilometres (1,600 miles) northeast of Jakarta, has
erupted 12 times since records have been kept. It most recently sprang
into action in 1987 but no casualties were reported.