Indonesia’s Mount Merapi erupts twice on Sunday

A view of Mount Merapi following an eruption, as seen from Sawit village, Boyolali, Central Java Province, Indonesia on Sunday. (Antara Foto/Aloysius Jarot Nugroho/via Reuters). Sketched by the Pan Pacific Agency.

SLEMAN, Jun 21, 2020, ANTARA. The Mount Merapi on the border of Yogyakarta’s Sleman District and Central Java Province erupted twice on Sunday morning producing a 6,000-meter-high ash column, ANTARA reported.

The first eruption occurred at 09.13 a.m. local time while the second one took place at around 09.27 a.m. local time, Head of the Sleman District Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) Makwan said here Sunday.

The height of the first eruption’s ash column was estimated at 6,000 meters from the Mount Merapi’s peak while its amplitude was recorded at 75 millimeters, he said, adding that the wind moved towards the west when the eruption occurred.

The two eruptions did not bring any ash rain down, and the situation remained secure in Glagaharjo Village, Cangkringan Subdistrict, Sleman District, Yogyakarta Province, following the eruptions, he said.

The Mt Merapi’s warning status has been declared “caution” since May 21, 2018. Local residents are suggested to remain calm but stay alert with the three-kilometer-safe distance.

This 2,930-meter-high volcano has repeatedly erupted over the past two years. On March 3, 2020, for instance, it erupted.

As a result of its eruption on that day, Directorate General of Civil Aviation of the Ministry of Transportation temporarily shut down the Adi Sumarmo International Airport in Solo, Central Java.

AirNav Indonesia issued Ashtam Number VAWR 9293 and a notice to airman concerning the airport’s temporary closure to offer guidance to pilots passing through the eruption area of Mount Merapi.

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