Mount Marapi Erupts Again With A Volcanic Abu Level Of 700 Meters

The eruption of Mount Marapi on Saturday (10/2/2024) with a height of 700 meters of volcanic ash was observed from Barantiang Bukit Batabuah Village, Agam Regency, West Sumatra. BETWEEN ANTARA/HO-personal documentation

West Sumatra's Dadang - Mount Marapi erupted again with a column height of ash reaching 700 meters above the peak.

"There has been an eruption of Mount Marapi, West Sumatra at around 16.51 WIB with a column height of ash observed 700 meters above the peak or 3,591 meters above sea level," said Head of the Volcano Observation Post (PGA) Marapi Ahmad Rifandi as reported by ANTARA, Saturday, February 10.

He said the ash column was observed to be white to gray with thick intensity leaning towards the southwest.

"This eruption was recorded on a seismogram with a maximum amplitude of 5 millimeters and a duration of 50 seconds," he said.

Meanwhile, the wind direction in the area of Mount Marapi at a layer of 3,000 ft leads to the Southwest.

The eruption recorded by PGA to date has reached 154 times with 15 eruptions occurring in February 2024 since the main eruption that occurred in early December 2023.

"Meanwhile, 1,016 gusts were recorded with 160 gusts occurring this February," said Ahmad Rifandi.

Residents hope that the eruption that blew to the southwest will not affect aviation activity in West Sumatra.

"Hopefully the direction to Padang City will not affect the Minangkabau International Airport (BIM) flight path again. Several times the flight was disrupted and its operations were stopped because of the disturbing ash material," said a resident, Aldion.

People around Mount Marapi are still prohibited from approaching 4.5 kilometers according to the PVMBG recommendation. In addition, residents around the mountains are asked to wear masks to avoid respiratory problems.