Mount Ile Lewotolok NTT Sprays Volcanic Ash As High As 1,000 Meters

Mount Ile Lewotolok NTT seen from Lembata. (Nanda-VOI)

NTT - Mount Ile Lewotolok erupts again. The mountain in Lembata Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province (NTT) spewed volcanic ash approximately 1,000 meters high.

"The ash column was observed to be gray in color with thick intensity leaning towards the west," said Head of the Mount Ile Lewotolok Monitoring Post, Stanis Arakian, who was contacted Friday, June 17.

He explained that this eruption was recorded on a seismogram with a maximum amplitude of 33 millimeters and a duration of approximately 48 seconds. The eruption that occurred due to the eruption, he said, was accompanied by a weak rumble.

The eruption that occurred, continued Stanis, was due to the heating of lava from inside the crater, which triggered Mount Ile Lewotolok to continue to erupt.

Stanis added, based on the results of a thorough analysis and evaluation on June 8, 2022, the activity level of the Ile Lewotolok volcano is still at Level III or standby. New recommendations will be reported based on the latest potential hazards.

Based on the Antara report, residents, climbers and tourists were asked not to carry out activities within a radius of 3 km from the peak or crater of the mountain which is now on alert status. Likewise in a 3.5 km radius for the southeast sector, a 4 km radius for the east and northeast sectors.

The communities of Lamawolo, Lamatokan, and Jontona villages are asked to always be aware of the potential threat of avalanches of incandescent lava and hot clouds from the eastern part of the peak or crater of the mountain.

Stanis revealed that heavy rains with quite high intensity in the last few days fell in areas within the radius of the ban on residents' activities on Mount Ile Lewotolok.

"People who live around the river that originates at the top of the mountain are to be aware of the potential threat of lahars, especially during the rainy season," he said.

The local government, he said, is now anticipating it by informing local residents to be aware of the eruption that continues to occur on the mountain.

"The continued eruption of the mountain has resulted in a buildup of material at the mouth of the crater of the mountain. And it is feared that if it is full it will cause a landslide of mountain material," said Stanis Arakian.