The volcano left at least 11 villages in the Lumajang district covered in volcanic ash, submerged houses, killed livestock and forced 1,300 people to take shelter in mosques, schools and other public buildings.
“We didn’t know it was boiling mud” explained Bunadi, a resident of the village of Kampung Renteng. “Suddenly, the sky darkened and the rains and boiling smoke came,” he explains.
“The death toll now stands at 14 people,” said the spokesman for the natural disaster management agency (BNPB) Abdul Muhari. The previous balance was 13 deaths. The eruption also injured 56 people, 41 of them from burns, according to the agency.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has ordered a swift emergency response to find the victims and treat the injured, said Pratikno, the secretary of state, who like many Indonesians has only one name.
Images of the moment of the eruption show a gigantic cloud of smoke over the volcano that looms towards a nearby town whose inhabitants are fleeing desperately.
The lava destroyed at least one bridge in Lumajang, leaving areas where rescue teams cannot reach.
The emergency services of an affected municipality published a video with the roofs of the houses sticking out of a layer of mud that destroyed them.
This Sunday, evacuations were temporarily suspended due to ash clouds, according to the Indonesian channel Metro TV.
There is also a risk that the heavy rains will cause the ash sediments to form a new river of hot lava, Indonesian volcanologist Surono warned in that chain.
Most of the victims died just after the eruption, hit by lava in their villages, Lumajang law enforcement agency spokesman Adi Hendro told AFP. “They did not have time to flee,” he commented.
At least seven people are still missing since the eruption, Hendro said, including two who authorities say may still be alive.
“There were signs that they were still alive, as there were lights, perhaps from their cell phones,” said the spokesman.
“But we can’t go there because the ground is still very hot. We want to ensure the safety of our teams,” he said.
Rescuers, dressed in orange uniforms, worked amid a dark gray environment in Lumajang (population 11,000), between collapsed buildings and fallen trees.
In other images from the emergency services, locals are seen trying to save their belongings, some carrying mattresses and furniture to their shelters or with live goats in their arms.
Source From: Ambito
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