Erupsi Gunung Lewotobi NTT, SAR Maumere Siaga Bantu Evacuasi Warga

Refugees walk on top of piles of volcanic ash in Wulanggitan District. (ANTARA)

KUPANG - Head of the Maumere SAR, Sikka Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Supriyanto Ridwan said he was ready to move if ordered to help evacuate thousands of residents affected by the eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki. "We are still waiting for evacuation requests from the local government," said Supriyanto Ridwan when contacted from Kupang, quoted by ANTARA Tuesday, January 2. This was conveyed by Supriyanto regarding the efforts of Basarnas Maumere in assisting the evacuation of residents affected by the eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki in the Wulangitan District area. He said that currently based on reports from the East Flores Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), many residents were affected by the eruption preferring to evacuate independently. "Residents affected by the eruption prefer to evacuate independently," he said. Supriyanto added that currently at the Maumere SAR Office there are 15 personnel. The personnel were alerted if needed. "In addition to the personnel on alert, we have also prepared a number of equipment that can be used to evacuate residents if it is needed," he said. Lewotobi Male Mountain in East Flores erupted on January 1, 2024 following the status increase from Level II or Alert to Level III or Alert. According to him, the eruption resulted in residents from four villages two to three kilometers from the mountain affected by volcanic ash and must be evacuated. The four villages are Klatanlo, Hokeng Jaya, Nawokote, and Waiula.

Residents also took refuge in several posts prepared by the regional government (Pemda) such as in sub-districts, SDK Kemiri, SMPN 1 Wulanggitang, CU Remaja Hokeng, Polsek, and Koramil. Some of them fled to houses of neighboring villagers who were not or were not affected. Volcanic ash is still occurring in the area and BPBD is still collecting data on both affected residents and poskos or houses occupied by residents.