Java The highest peak of the island of projected Saturday a large plume of ash and burning mud caused floods that have invaded villages on its flanks and killed 15 people.
Le Monde with AFP
The Indonesian volcano Semeru has again thrown the ashes Monday, December 6, slowing relief efforts to search for survivors after the eruption of dramatic weekend which devastated several villages and killed 15 people, according to a latest balance sheet.
The highest peak on the island of Java projected Saturday a large plume of ash and burning mud caused floods that have invaded villages on its flanks. More than a thousand panicked residents had to be evacuated. The eruption left at least 15 dead and dozens injured, 27 people still missing, according to a latest report released Monday by the disaster management agency.
On aerial photos, one can see entire streets filled with clusters of gray ash and mud covering trucks or houses to the roof. “I still hope to find my son (…) Every time I hear that a victim was found hopefully this is my son,” said Maskur Suhri who harvested the palm sap is when Semeru erupted.
“There is a slight chance he survived. Perhaps this is his destiny, but I still hope to find him, if only his body,” says this resident of the village of Sumberwuluh.
Rescue operations were slowed because of renewed volcanic activity Monday morning, which forced some teams to interrupt their work. “There was a new eruption and could endanger the evacuation teams,” said a rescuer, Rizal Purnama.
Later orange clothing rescuers and helmet were beginning to search the ashes and mud to try to find survivors and bodies, while smoke still escaping from the ashes.
The task becomes even more difficult as the volcanic debris harden. “It’s very difficult (…) with simple tools,” says Rizal Purnama. “It is very likely that the bodies are not recovered are buried under the hot mud flows.”
Workers of missing mine
The authorities have asked residents not to go within five kilometers of the crater, the air saturated ash dust in the area being dangerous to vulnerable people.
The ash from the eruption has spread over four kilometers, according to the Indonesian Geological Agency. The office of a sand mine was buried after the eruption, trapping 15 people inside and around ensures particularly Hasim, a foreman 65 who like many Indonesians carries only a name.
“We have no news. Only one worker was rescued, he is in the hospital with burns,” he he said. Some victims were buried alive in their vehicle without having had time to escape, rescuers reported. Suwarti Ningsi was trapped for five hours in her home with her daughter.
“I could not see anything, it was like night Everyone was panicking.” He told the 42-year Indonesian: “I could only pray (…) for me and my daughter let rescued . “
The rain expected in the region in coming days could complicate the work of the rescuers, because it may form ash flows and hot mud. Semeru, the highest peak in Java, which culminates at 3676 meters, has seen many eruptions in recent decades but rarely as destructive.
It last erupted most of December 2020. It had also caused the flight of thousands of people and covered entire villages. Since this episode, the authorities maintained the alert level of the volcano to the second highest.
Indonesia is located on the “Ring of Fire” Pacific, where the meeting of continental plates causes high seismic activity. The archipelago of Southeast Asia has nearly 130 active volcanoes on its territory. At the end of 2018, the eruption of a volcano between the islands of Java and Sumatra caused a landslide submarine and a tsunami, killing nearly 400 people.