A volatile volcano in central Indonesia unleashed its most powerful eruption yet Sunday, spewing hot ash and smoke thousands of feet (meters) into the air and sending panicked villagers racing back to emergency shelters. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Mount Lokon, located on northern Sulawesi island, has been dormant for years but rumbled back to life late last week.A series of overnight blasts Thursday and Friday claimed one life — a woman who suffered a heart attack as she fled.
But Surono, a government volcanologist who uses only one name, said Sunday's 10:35 a.m. eruption released the greatest amount of energy so far, shooting soot and debris 11,400 feet (3,500 meters) into the sky.
The powerful explosion sent them racing back down the slopes, some jumping into cars and motorcycles, others rounded up by soldiers and police and escorted down in trucks.
"It was huge," said Henny Lalawi, who works as a picker for a coffee plantation. "It sounded like a bomb and then I saw the crater burst, sending ash high into the air. It was pretty awesome, really."
She said she'll have to go back when things settle down."It's only ash, after all, and I need the work."
Sutopo Purwo Nugroho from the National Disaster Management Agency said there were no reports of injuries or new deaths Sunday.
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