Mount Sinabung in Indonesia Erupts Again, Forces Evacuations

November 16,2013

 

 

 

 

Superheated ash and gas flowing down the slopes of Indonesia's Sinabung volcano signals the intensity of eruptions may be increasing at the fiery mountain, according to local officials.
More than 5,000 people have been evacuated from towns and villages in North Sumatra's Karo Regency since Mount Sinabung awoke in October after a three-year dormancy. Karo is an agricultural region that supplies vegetables for surrounding islands. The evacuation and devastating ash fall have affected crop harvests, leading to higher prices on vegetables and chilies elsewhere in Indonesia, according to the Jakarta Post.
(MORE: Severe Weather Outbreak Possible)

Mount Sinabung spews pyroclastic smoke as seen from Tigapancur village in Karo district on November 14, 2013 in Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia. (Getty/Ulet Ifansasti)

The Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation warned people not to approach within 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) of Mount Sinabung.
On Monday (Nov. 11), a pyroclastic flow, a fast-moving avalanche of ash, lava fragments and air, was seen racing down the peak. Since then, the volcano has blasted out one to two ash explosions every day. Lava has flowed more than 1,000 meters (3,200 feet) from the top of the volcano. [Watch Mount Sinabung erupt]
Indonesia lies in the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an area of crustal collision zones that is the cause of a great number of earthquakes and volcanoes. The island nation has more than 130 active volcanoes. The world's most deadly volcanic eruption in recent years was at its Mount Merapi in 2010, which killed more than 350 people.

• Big Blasts: History's 10 Most Destructive Volcanoes
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• The World's Five Most Active Volcanoes

Below are photos gathered from social media:

Mount Sinabung Erupts in North Sumatra, Indonesia

NBC News Pictures        ✔ @NBCNewsPictures

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Bitter harvest: Indonesia volcano damages crops, forces thousands to flee http://nbcnews.to/1j9eCnu 

8:30 AM - 15 Nov 2013

 

  95 Retweets 32 favorites

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anthony Sagliani @anthonywx

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INCREDIBLE photo of massive eruption of Sumatra's Mount #Sinaburg volcano hours ago.

2:58 AM - 15 Nov 2013

 

 

  419 Retweets 111 favorites

 

 

 

 

  NBC News        ✔ @NBCNews Follow

Photos: Indonesia volcano damages crops as it coats fields in ash, forces thousands to flee http://nbcnews.to/HV9tnB 

5:40 PM - 15 Nov 2013

Bitter harvest: Indonesia volcano damages crops, forces thousands to...

Indonesian farmers continued to harvest their crops Thursday even as a volcano erupted less than two and a half miles away, coating their fields in ash.  Up to 4,300 residents have been evacuated...

NBC News Pictures @NBCNewsPictures

23 Retweets 7 favorites

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pariwisata SUMUT @pariwisataSUMUT

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Pray for Karo Land #Sinabung - Indonesian volcano erupts with 2.5 mile eruption cloud pic.twitter.com/Iuhb8JNBQi via @maelorgeography

12:58 AM - 15 Nov 2013

 

  83 Retweets 2 favorites

 

 

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