Mount Merapi 6 Times Launched Hot Clouds Fall

Mount Merapi on the border of the Special Region of Yogyakarta and Central Java launched hot clouds of avalanches on Thursday, July 8 (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Mount Merapi on the border of the Special Region of Yogyakarta and Central Java launched six hot avalanches with a maximum glide distance of 1,500 meters to the southwest and southeast on Thursday.

Head of the Geological Disaster Technology Research and Development Center (BPPTKG) Hanik Humaida through his official statement in Yogyakarta, Thursday, said that during the first observation period, hot clouds avalanche occurred at 05.12, 05.33 and 05.46 WIB with a maximum glide distance of 1,000 meters to the southwest. .

"Heat cloud avalanches were recorded on seismographs with a maximum amplitude of 35 mm and a maximum duration of 100 seconds," he said as quoted by Antara, Thursday, July 8.

Avalanche hot clouds were again observed coming out of Merapi at 06.15, 09.38, and 09.55 WIB with a maximum sliding distance of 1,500 meters to the southeast, a maximum amplitude of 60 mm, and a duration of 127 seconds.

At the time of this hot cloud avalanche, the wind was blowing weak to moderate to the east and west.

During the observation period at 06:00-12:00 WIB, BPPTKG also recorded three earthquakes of hot avalanches with an amplitude of 40-60 mm for 95-127 seconds, 96 times of earthquake avalanches with an amplitude of 3-30 mm for 7-161 seconds, four earthquake gusts with an amplitude of 2-6 mm for 13-18 seconds.

Then there was one low-frequency earthquake with an amplitude of six millimeters for 11 seconds, 42 times a multi-phase earthquake with an amplitude of 2-12 mm for 4-11 seconds, and 15 shallow volcanic earthquakes with an amplitude of 35-75 mm for 9-24 seconds.

Until now, BPPTKG still maintains the status of Mount Merapi at Level III or Alert.

The lava flows and hot clouds of Mount Merapi are expected to affect the area in the south-southwest sector which includes the Yellow River, Boyong, Bedog, Krasak, Bebeng, and Putih.

When the volcano erupts, the ejection of volcanic material can reach a radius of three kilometers from the top of the mountain.