A volcano on the remote Indonesian island of Halmahera erupted dramatically, sending a grey ash cloud into the sky and forcing evacuations from seven nearby villages, according to authorities. Mount Ibu erupted on Saturday evening, launching ash 4 km high, with purple lightning flashing around its crater, as reported by Indonesia’s volcanology agency.
A team of police, military, and search and rescue officials was sent to evacuate residents from surrounding villages, said Abdul Muhari from the disaster mitigation agency. Residents were moved in pickup trucks and spent the night in emergency tents. The disaster agency did not specify the number of people evacuated, but authorities recommended clearing a 7 km radius around the volcano.
Indonesia’s volcanology agency raised the alert level of Mount Ibu to the highest level on Thursday, following multiple eruptions earlier this month. Ibu is one of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes, with over 21,000 eruptions last year. This eruption is part of a series of volcanic activities in Indonesia, which lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire and has 127 active volcanoes.
