Volcanic ash rained over an area of 10 square kilometers.
Jakarta:
The Indonesian mountain Merapi, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, erupted on Thursday when fiery red melted lava poured from the crater and clouds of gray ash belched 2,000 meters into the sky.
The authorities have not raised the alarming status of the rumbling volcano after the early morning eruption, but advised commercial aircraft to exercise caution in the area.
But every activity in Merapi is a matter of concern and residents have been instructed to stay outside a three-kilometer restricted area around the rumbling crater near the Indonesian cultural capital Yogyakarta.
According to the Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center, volcanic ash rained over an area of 10 square kilometers.
The last major eruption of Mount Merapi in 2010 killed more than 300 people and evacuated around 280,000 people.
It was Merapi's strongest outbreak since 1930, killing around 1,300 people, while another explosion in 1994 claimed around 60 lives.
The Southeast Asian archipelago has more than 17,000 islands and islets and almost 130 active volcanoes.
It is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a huge zone of geological instability where the collision of tectonic plates causes frequent tremors and large volcanic activity.
(Except for the headline, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and published from a syndicated feed.)
